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VIRGINIA CHILDREN WEARING PARTY CAPS 
AND PLAYING WITH TOYS MADE BY VERMONT CHILDREN 


AT SCHOOL WITH 
THE GREAT TEACHER 


A SUNDAY AND WEEKDAY COURSE 


COMPLETE IN THREE PARTS 


ee THEOLOGICAL SE! 
4 


Sif 47 Ss a ty? 
F Uul 2 1997 


: REIGNER READING ROOM 


FOR CHILDREN APPROXIMATELY 
EIGHT YEARS OF AGE 


BY 
JEANETTE ELOISE PERKINS 
IN EDITORIAL COLLABORATION WITH 
FRANCES WELD DANIELSON 


EVERYDAY CHRISTIAN LIVING SERIES 


THE PILGRIM PRESS 
BOSTON CHICAGO 


Coprricut 1924 
By SIDNEY A. WESTON 


Printed in the United States of America 


THE JORDAN & MORE PRESS 
BOSTON 


CONTENTS 


FoREWORD . d 5 ; : : : ; : : : ; ; ; 
The Story of How This Course Grew; The Two Experiment Stations; Time Division 
of Sunday Sessions. 

First Sunpay (October) 2 Gee eA DAL Ay peer REPOST 2 oy si hod aay Cs Rare ead Taw Sea MARL 7 oP Se 
Detailed seasonal worship services; Story, ‘“‘ In Happy Valley,”’ on going to school to 
the great Teacher; Birthday service; Weekday plans. 


ALTERNATE First SUNDAY 


First WEEKDAY f : . ‘ : : ; . : . : 
Hike: Games; Autumn story and song suggestions; Planning a worship service. Re- 
ports on: “‘ Hike; Alternate for “Hike.” 

SECOND SunpAyY (October) . : ‘ f : ‘ : : i : 
Original seasonal worship service planned on weekday session; Retelling last Sunday’s 
story; New story, “ How Schools Came to Happy Valley; Conversation and prayer 

’ in appreciation of school teachers. 


SEconD WEEKDAY . ‘ ; : : : j : i 
Games, Discussion, Story and Plans for Teachers: Ways of meeting typical situations 
during games; Discussion of Sunday’s worship service; Story, “‘ The Fairy Godmother’s 
Gifts,” on dependence upon teachers; Plans for entertaining school teachers. Re- 
ports on: Plans for original play and song for teachers; ‘“ Telling Tales.” 


Tutrp Sunpay (October) ; ‘ : S088 ; : : ; ’ : 
Worship, conversation and review stories on knowledge of God’s world; Dramatiza- 
tion of mothers bringing children to the great Teacher; Story suggestion, ‘‘ Reading 
and Writing and Getting Ready.” Report on Deviations from program. 


Turrp WEEKDAY E : : ; 2 ; 
Composing Song and Party Plans: Poem, “A Song about Teachers.” Reports on: 
“Composing Songs;’ ‘Planning the Party;’ ‘“‘ Getting Cooperation.” Original 
songs: “When We Were Little Children;’’ ‘‘ Our Teachers are like Fairies.” 


FourtH Sunpay (October). 4 ; , : ¢ : é : J : 
Praise for God’s house and day; Appreciation of day-school teachers through old stories, 
a game, conversation and original songs; Dramatization based on poem, ‘‘ The First 
Children’s Day; Story, “ The Story of George Kling,” on ‘‘ Going to school to Jesus,” 
including John’s story of Jesus and the woman. Report on ‘‘ Composing a Song.” 


FourtH WEEKDAY ; ; : d ; F : ; 3 : : . 
Planning the Teachers’ Party. Reports on: ‘‘ Completing Party Plans;’ ‘‘ Problems 
of Disorder; “ Interest Leading to Continued Work;’” “ Planning a Play.” 


Firra Sunpay (October — November) ; ; : t ; : : ; : 
Seasonal worship; Original prayer; Old story and conversation on ‘‘ Going to school 
to Jesus;’’ New Story, “ The First Four Pupils in Jesus’ School.’”’ Report on “ Pay- 
ing Back.” 


FrrtaH WEEKDAY . : : ; ; \ 3 : : ; ; : : 
Party for Children’s Day-school Teachers. Reports on: ‘‘ The Party; ‘‘ The Play;’” 
“Hosts and Hostesses in Evolution; ‘“‘ Florrie Takes the Blame;”’ ‘Invitation to 
Plan a Service.” 


SrxtH Sunpay (November) . ; é : , : : } : : é . 
Thanksgiving praise, conversation and prayer; Dramatization based on last Sunday’s 
story; New Story: “ The Discovery of Happy Valley; Note on Thanksgiving worship 
service. 

Report on “ Adjustments on a Stormy Sunday.” 


iti 


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iv CONTENTS 


SixtH WEEKDAY . : : ; . ; ; ; : : : : lame 
Hike. Reports on: “ Challenging Remarks and Incidents;’’ “ Problems of the Hike.” 


SEVENTH SunDAY (November) 
Thanksgiving worship; Plans for Thanksgiving service; Visit to church auditorium with 
minister. Reports on: ‘“ A Visit to Church Auditorium; ” “ Shouldering the Blame.” 


SEVENTH WEEKDAY 
Preparation for Thanksgiving; The Service; Uy hanksgiving story suggestions; "Mak- 
ing Thanksgiving place-cards. Reports on: ‘“ Preparation for Thanksgiving Service;” 
“The Great Teacher; ‘‘ Puzzling Problems;” ‘“‘ A Story;” ‘‘ Taking Work Home;” 
** Home Appreciation and Cooperation.” 


EieuHTH Sunpay (November) . 
Children’s Thanksgiving Service. 


EicgHTH WEEKDAY . : : . ; ; ; : : : 
Preparation for Christmas: Conversation with Pictures; Story, “ Freely Ye Received, 
Freely Give; Discussion of Thanksgiving service; Plans for Christmas program; 
Christmas work. Reports on: “ Christmas Program Making;” ‘“ Christmas Work;’ 
“Use of Self-Control;” “ Belief in Santa Claus.” 


NintH Sunpay (November—December) . ‘ y : , ; 
Appreciation lesson on “O Little Town of Bethlehem;” Story suggestion, ‘“ The 
Great Walled Country;” Impersonation of shepherds and strangers. Reports on: 
“The Christmas Impersonation;’ “ Failure to Make Christianity Function.” 


A Moruers’ MEETING . 


NinTH WEEKDAY . ; ‘ 4 é : ‘ : ; ; ; : A 
Christmas Surprises: Happy Valley Story, ‘‘ Mrs. Fairchild’s Christmas Present; ”’ 
Comments, Plans and Work. Reports on: “ Saving Time for Mothers;” ‘ Incident 
of Self-Control; Sahea WOODK A 


TENTH SunDAY (December) 
Christmas worship; Discussion of “ banked time’ > Dramatization of Christmas story; 
Appreciation of poem, “ If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy ;’ Story suggestion, “ The Jar of 
Rosemary.” Report of School B. 


TenTH WEEKDAY . : ; : , : : : . : : : 
Plans, Story and Work. Reports on: ‘‘ Time Saved for Mothers;’” ‘‘ The Christmas 
Program;” “Problem of Assistants; “Santa Claus Again.” 


ELEVENTH SunpAY (December) : : y ; d : 
Christmas worship; Making silhouette Christmas posters; Story Suggestion, “ Why 
the Chimes Rang.” Reports on: ‘Interruption during Quiet Music ”’ (concerning 
Christian flag); “ Alternate for First Class Period; ‘‘ An Invitation;’ ‘‘ Addition 
to Second Class Period.” 


ELEVENTH WEEKDAY . : , , : 
Christmas Plans and Work. Reports on: “Time Saved for Mothers;” ‘“* Christmas 
Program Plans;”’ “ Bright Spots.” 


TWELFTH SuNDAY (December) 
Children’s Christmas Program. 


TWELFTH WEEKDAY ‘ : : : : : , ; 
Sharing the Christmas Program. " Reports on: “ Christmas Program at Soldiers’ 


29 


Home;”’ “ Revealing Incidents.” 


THIRTEENTH SUNDAY (December) ; 
Worship, conversation and discussion arising from Christmas | service and institution 
visited; Story of St. Nicholas, “ The Three Bags of Gold;” Happy Valley story, ‘ The 
Spirit of St. Nicholas.” Reports on: Belief i in Santa Claus; ‘ ‘ Criticisms of Christmas 
Service;’ ‘‘ Saving Time for Mothers.” 


THIRTEENTH WEEKDAY . . : ; 4 
Plans for the New Year; Story, ‘ ‘Happy Valley’ s New Year;” New Year Plans. 
Reports on: ‘‘ Charts to Encourage Helpfulness at Home;” “ Time Saved for Mothers.” 


PAGE 
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CONTENTS 


FourTEENTH SuNpDAY (January) : : P y : : : F ; : 
New Year’s talk on prayer; Behavior on weekday hikes; New Year’s story, “ The 
Twelve Treasure-Boxes; Story, “‘ How the Disciples Learned to be Great.” Reports 
on: “ The Beginning of a Project in Friendship; ” “ Marking Charts;” “ A Lost Oppor- 
tunity.” 


FOURTEENTH WEEKDAY . : ; : : ; ‘ : : : : : 
Winter Hike. Reports on: ‘‘ Exhibition of Temper;’ “ Leader’s Meditations.” 


FIFTEENTH SuNDAY (January). : ‘ ; : , : ; : : ‘ 
Seasonal praise; Story, “The Greatest Animal; Dramatization; Picture gallery. 
Report on “ Impromptu Dramatization.”’ 


FIFTEENTH WEEKDAY 
Party Preparations. 


SIXTEENTH SuNDAY (January) . : : : : : ; ; : ; E ; 
Making people happy; Incident, child radiating happiness; Story, ‘‘ The Magic Mask.” 
eports on: “ Isn’t It Really a Picture of Jesus?” ‘‘ Recognition of Self-Control,’ 
“Problem of Discipline;’ ‘‘ Comments during the Week;” ‘“ Idea of Prayer which In- 
fluenced Future Programs.” 


SIXTEENTH WEEKDAY . : : ; ; : j 
Continued Preparation for Party; Stories: ‘‘ The Quails,” ‘‘ The Party.” 


SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY (January) . ; : : : : : : 
Seasonal worship; Discussion of party; Appreciation of ‘‘ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus;” 
Story, “Jesus at a Party.” Report on ‘“ An Effort to Overcome Disorder.” 


SEVENTEENTH WEEKDAY ; 
Party for Schoolmates. 


EIGHTEENTH SunDAY (January—February) . A : ; . ‘ : ; 5 
Poem, “ When Jesus was a Little Lad;” Conversation about Jesus, childhood’s pattern; 
Checking up on party; Stories: ‘‘ The Children’s Playground,” “ Jesus in His Father’s 
House.” 


EIGHTEENTH WEEKDAY . : k F : ; : F ; : ‘ : 
Story and Work: A Happy Valley Story, ‘‘ How the New Year Law Worked; Work. 
Reports on: “Second Step of Project in Friendship;”’ ‘‘ The Magic of a Song.” 


NINETEENTH SuNDAY (February) . , : ; ' : : : , d : 
Worship service based on ‘“‘ The Gentle Child of Nazareth;” Picture study review; 
Story, “ The Monk’s Bible; Correlated handwork. 


NINETEENTH WEEKDAY . 
Making Books. 


TWENTIETH SuNDAY (February) : ‘ E ' : é ; } j ; . 
Worship service on gentleness part of greatness; Note-book work; Picture study and 
blackboard illustration of Jesus’ spirit in our homes. Report on ‘* Worship Service on 
Self-Control.” 


TWENTIETH WEEKDAY . ; 3 4 , , : . : ; : . 3 
Story and Work: A Happy Valley Story, ‘‘ The Wise Man’s Pack ” (on prayer); Work 
on books. Reports on: “ Self-control;’ ‘‘ The School of the Great Teacher.” 


Twenty-First Sunpay (February) . : P 2 ; ‘ : 5 , : : 
Worship service on Jesus, childhood’s pattern; Composing a prayer; Stories: ‘“ The 
Secret Power of Jesus,” ‘‘ How Jesus Used His Secret Power.”’ Report on “ Children’s 
Illustrations of Self-Control.” 


PAGE 


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Riles CONTENTS 


Twenty-First WEEKDAY : : : ‘ me ae : ; : 
Story and Work for a Missionary Project; ““ Story from the Wise Man’s Pack.” Re- 
port on “ Florrie’s Loss of Self-Control.” 


TWENTY-SECOND SunbDAyY (February—March) . : 
Use of original prayer; Dramatization revealing secret of Jesus’ power; Picture study 
and talk on prayer; Reports on: ‘“ Quarantining;’ “ Making up for a Neglected 
Opportunity.” 


TWENTY-SECOND WEEKDAY . : , ; 
Story: A Happy Valley Story, “From the Wise Man’s Pack.” Reports on: “ Blunders 
of Leader;” ‘‘ Work.” 


TWENTY-T HIRD SunDAY (March) ; ; 
Picture study and talk on ‘“ Thy will be done;” Note-book work; “Story suggesting 
“Thy kingdom come;” Story, “ The Kingdom of Love.” 


TWENTY-THIRD WEEKDAY 
Spring Hike. Report on “ Preparing for a Hike and its Problems.” 


TweEenty-Fourta Sunpay (March) 


Seasonal worship; Kingdom of God made clear through pictures; " Spartan legend 


of ideal kingdom; Story, “ A Man who Wanted to See Jesus. Report on “ Plans for 
Making Amends.” 


TWENTY-FouRTH WEEKDAY 
Three Alternatives: Hike, Program of Work or Study, or Planning a Spring Worship 
Service; Happy Valley Story, § ‘The Stocking Doll.’”” Report on “ Stuart and Florrie 
Make Amends.” 


TwEnty-Firta Sunpay (March) ; : “ é ; : 
Praise service; Conversation; Poem, “We Would See Jesus,” with old story; Mis- 
sionary pictures and song; Story suggestion, ** A Blind Man Who Wished to See Jesus.” 
ree on: “ Checking up on the Hike;’’ ‘“‘ Plan for Worship Services;” ‘‘ Revealing 

emarks.”’ 


TWENTy-FirtH WEEKDAY : 
Work, Instruction, Stories. Reports Ons Profiting by Former Blunders: > Another 
Step in the Friendship Project; ” “ Florrie goes into Quarantine;” “ Child’s Note Sug- 
gesting Next Program.” 


TWENTY-SIXTH SUNDAY (March—April) ; 
Children’s original spring worship service; Picture gallery. Reports on: “ Sharing the 
Interest in Virginia with Primary and Junior Departments;” ‘ Florrie Again.” 


TWENTY-SIXTH WEEKDAY i ; } : 
Work on Missionary Enterprise. Report on “ Forming a Council.” 


TWENTY-SEVENTH SuNDAY (April) 


Story, ‘‘ When Jesus was Angry;”’ Visit to church auditorium; Possibilities of church 
project. Reports on: “ Florrie’s Bluff;”’ Appreciation of God’s House.” 


TWENTY-SEVENTH WEEKDAY : 
Hike. Reports on: ‘“ The F riendship Project; * John Plays Big Brother; * & Con- 
sulting Florrie’s Mother.” 


TwEntTy-E1cutH Sunpay (April: Palm Sunday) 


Suggested story and. dramatization of the Trucchi Ene - The Story of Jesus’ Est 
Days on Earth.” Reports on: “ Happy Reference to Children’s Decorations;”’ ‘‘ Re- 
sponsibility Recognized; ” “The Christian Flag;” ‘‘ Seeing the Connection; “‘ Palm 
Sunday Program.” 


TWENTy-E1cHTH WEEKDAY ‘ 


Preparation for Easter. Reports on: etter: Sent S Class during Week; eee Hintnat 
N ature in Evidence; ” pe * Criticising the Hike; “ Enthusiasm in Work; ” “The Rebus 
Letter.” Easter Stories: ‘‘ A Lesson in Faith;” “ The Caterpillar’ s Journey;” 
“What the Grub Found Out.” 


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CONTENTS 


Twenty-Nintu Sunpay (April: Easter) . : ; ; ‘ : : : 
Poem, “ There Was a King in Nazareth; ”” “ The Easter Story.” Reports on: ‘ Depart- 
mental Easter Program; ” “ Easter Program with Entire School ” (composite story of 
Jesus); “ Before and After Program; ” ‘ Another Side of Florrie.” 

Twenty-Ninta WEEKDAY : ; , : . ‘ : ‘ : ; 
Work and Story Possibilities. Stories: ‘‘ The Little Girl Who Played All the Time; ” 
“ In the Path of the Tornado.”” Report on “ Spring Hike.” 

Tairtieta Sunpay (April) 3 : : : : ; ; : : ; 
Original spring service; Story, “ Peter’s Lie; ” Suggestion for composing song. Report 
on “ Broom Brigade.” 

THIRTIETH WEEKDAY 3 ' : A : 3 ; ¢ ; : : 
Work and Story; “ George Kling’s Gift (including ‘‘ The Widow’s Mite ”’). Report 
on “ White Wings.” 

Tutrty-First Sunpay (April-May). : ; ; ; : t : ; é 
Criticism of last Sunday’s service; Use of “ picture gallery; ”’ Worship service sugges- 
tions; Picture study; Story, “‘ Peter and John and a Lame Man.” Reports on: ‘‘ Popu- 
larity of Our Class; ” “‘ Worship Service Growing Out of Weekday Activity.” 

Tuirty-First WEEKDAY. : : ; : : é * : i ; : : 
Hiking and Planning. Reports on: ‘“‘ Good Sportsmanship; ” ‘ Alternative for Hike.” 

Tutrty-Seconp Sunpay (May) : ; : : i : , : : : 
Great Teacher dramatization; Mothers’ Day program; Possible gift for church. Re- 
ports on: “ A Mothers’ Day Inspiration; ” “ Council Meeting.” 

Tuirty-SECOND WEEKDAY : : a F ‘ : : : ; : : 
Various Plans; Story, “ Half-Finished Land.” Reports on: “Stuart Will not Spoil 
this Hike;”’ “Tina is Not Weary in Well-doing;”” “Songs about Teachers are Not 
Forgotten; ’’ ‘‘ Council versus Action.” 

Tarety-Tutrp Sunpay (May) . ; : ; 3 : : ; ? ¢ : 
Preparation for Children’s Day and Exhibit. © Reports on: “Spring Worship Service 
Prepared by Anne;” ‘“ Children Plan their Exhibit; ”’ “ Children’s Day Service Grows 
Naturally.” 

Tuirty-Tutrp WEEKDAY. : ; : ; : ; : : ; : : : 
Planning the Exhibit. Reports on: ‘“‘ Exhibit Plans; ” Dramatization Saves the Day.” 

Tutrty-FourtH SunpAy (May). é 3 : ; : : ; ; 

Talk, on “ Be Not Weary in Well-doing; ” Story, “ The Man at the Pool.” 

Tuirty-FourtH WEEKDAY (May) ‘ : : : : ; ; : i : 
The Exhibit; Story, “ The Boy Who Learned Most.” Reports on: ‘“‘ The Tragedy of 
Karl’s ‘Bible’; ” ‘‘ Whole-hearted Preparations; ”’ ‘‘ The Exhibit; ‘‘ Overheard at the 
Exhibit; ’’ ‘“‘ Real Hosts and Hostesses;”’ ‘‘ Tributes to Our Class.” 

Tairnty-Firra Sunpay (June) . : : . ; ; : : ; 

Reviewing the Exhibit; Poem, ‘“‘ Children Who Walk in Jesus’ Way.” 

Tatraty-Firta WEEKDAY : d : : : : ; : : 5 
Final Preparations for Children’s Day. Report on “ The Friendship Project.” 

Turrty-SixtH Sunpay (June: Children’s Day) : ; ; ; ; : 

Reports on: “ Our Class in the Service; ” “ Our Class through the Summer.”’ 


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FOREWORD 


The Story of How This Course Grew 


To be a true pedagogue — this is the ideal for every Christian teacher of religious education, 
and the word takes on a new and beautiful significance when we remember its original meaning. 

The two Greek words of which it is composed stood in ancient times for that person in the Greek 
household whose duty it was each day to take the children of the house to the house of their tutor. 
The pedagogue himself rarely taught. His high office was to lead the child to the master teacher, 
there to be taught by him. 

There have been many courses of lessons which, in the hands of conscientious teachers and lovers 
of children, were designed for that very end. But through them the children and their leader met 
the great Teacher only once a week, on a day set apart from ordinary living, and under artificial 
conditions. The ancient pedagogue led his charge each day to the master. 

A brief hour once in seven days is not enough time for the teacher of a Way of Living. This 
fact is now universally recognized, so supplementary weekday courses have grown, giving opportu- 
nity for extending religious education into the week. Since these courses are complete in themselves, 
not dependent upon the Sunday lessons nor closely related to them, it means that children may be 
studying two distinct courses in religious education, one taught on a weekday, one on Sunday, each 
with a different leader, a different aim and perhaps rivaling each other in interest. 

In view of this situation a special committee was given the task of preparing a Sunday and weck- 
day program which should be a unit in itself. Such a course must provide for Sunday “ lessons ”’ 
to be continued in the weekday sessions, weekday stories and activities leading up to the next 
Sunday’s program, and experiences on both days which would furnish material for real worship. 

The committee undertook the work only for one grade. The third was chosen, and the group 
around the table settled down to consider the problems of children eight years old, for the course 
was to be built upon their problems. It was as if there were no existing lessons of any kind, Sunday 
or weekday. There was no “ body of material” which the committee felt bound to include; no 
specific portions of the Bible had been staked out for study or memorization. The thoughts of the 
group were concerned only with John and Mary and their contemporaries. What could their church 
do with this opportunity of leading them at least two days in the week to their Master Teacher? 

Obviously, to lead a child anywhere, we must look about first and find out where he is. He is 
not normally in the Arabian desert, nor on the top of Mt. Nebo, nor plunged in the depths of despair, 
nor sitting in a brown study pondering life choices. It may be desirable eventually to lead him toward 
or away from some of these milestones, but we have to start from the place where he is. 

Where is he at eight, and in the fall of the year? We find all his interests (which represent him) 
centered in home, school and play. But do these hold any problems for him, which the church can 
help him solve? 

Every new day presents new problems to a child. Before he is old enough to enter school he 
knows one world, his home. His parent’s word is law; he is accustomed to certain standards; he 
has a few social contacts. At six or thereabouts he is thrust into a new world, his school. He finds 
a new authority here; a set of standards which may or may not be consistent with those he knows 
at home; new relationships; many contacts. It is a puzzling and oftentimes baffling task he has, 
to adjust himself to this new world, and it may take years to reconcile one with the other. 

The church should not confuse him further by creating another world for him. Rather its task 
shall be to interpret for him those he already knows religiously, helping him to find the reason for 
things as they are and to make choices according to the highest standards of all, looking to Jesus for 
the final authority. 


ix 


x FOREWORD 


The committee was in close touch with children, some as parents, some as teachers. There came 
a rapid fire of questions, as the group turned time backward in its flight, and became eight years old: 

“Why do I have to learn tables? go to school? do hard things? Why do I have to mind? Why 
does the teacher like Joe better than me?” 

“Why can’t I hold the flag? lead the march? Why is the teacher so cross sometimes? Why do 
I have to keep still? Why can’t we tell each other the answers? How can I know what I mustn't 
do? Why don’t the children like me? What makes Angelo talk so funny? Tom hit me; why 
shouldn’t I hit back? Should I ever hit back? Why can’t I go to the movies? ”’ 

A child’s problems are endless. He is trying to learn how to live, which gave the committee 
the clue for its program building. The first month would be devoted to interpreting school rela- 
tionships religiously. Here was a start on the child’s own ground. One member of the committee 
was to try out the programs as outlined, in her own church in a New England village. Another 
church in a northern city offered to furnish a second experiment station. From the interests of the 
children in these two groups, and the actual needs brought to light by their responses, the course 
would develop. 

It was understood that although the programs were outlined more or less in detail, they would 
not be slavishly followed. No committee in the world can provide material a month ahead which 
will be guaranteed to fill the demands of a special group at a given date, even though the leader of 
one may be a member of that committee. Little and big emergencies arise which must be dealt 
with at once, and carefully laid plans for the session are often shot to pieces. No one can tell just 
when a quarrel, a demonstration of selfishness, an epidemic, or a national disaster may occur, yet any 
one of these may change the trend of a single program, if not an entire series. 

In fact, as it proved, that is exactly what happened. As month by month the committee met, 
before it did any work on the next month’s program, it heard what the last month’s had brought 
forth. The detailed reports from both experiment stations showed how the original outline had 
been used, changed, or discarded, what responses had caused substitutions, and what these substitu- 
tions were. 

Thus the committee knew when “ tattling ’’ was rampant; when Marion told a lie; the painful 
results when Stuart lost his temper; how hard it was to make John join in the games; when good 
times as well as whole programs were spoiled by the general lack of self-control; when a father’s store 
was saved from a fire, as a direct answer, so Florrie thought, to her prayer. The committee knew, 
and bent all its efforts to helping actual children with actual problems, for it recognized these groups 
as normal children and the problems as well-nigh universal. What was done to help them might 
be of value to other children. And so the course grew steadily from the inside. 

A nature-study hike would lead naturally to the desire to share one’s discoveries with others, 
and a worship service planned by the class for the whole department would follow. The planning 
of, working for, and subsequent discussion of one enterprise would lead to the undertaking of a more 
elaborate one in the hope of better results. Thus one project after another was carried through by 
the children with whole-hearted enthusiasm, because each was initiated by them or became theirs 
through a natural appeal. 

‘“‘We made that song ourselves; it’s all ours!” 

“Wasn't that a nice party, though? Some different from the Christmas one, — we didn’t run 
that!” 

“Tt would have been better,’ (a program) “ if we'd paid more attention. Can’t we have some-: 
thing else like that sometime? ” 

(Before a party) ‘‘ Gee, I hope I don’t get acting funny! ” 

Such comments show not only the children’s pride in achievement, but their real desire for im- 
provement. 

To be interpreters of life for the child the church-school teacher must naturally know his whole 
environment. Through visits to the homes and day-school classes both the mothers and teachers 
became heartily interested in the Sunday and weekday program, stating many of their own prob- 
lems, and suggesting ways in which the class program might help them. That mothers are and 


FOREWORD xi 


always will be sympathetic with enterprises which honestly seek to teach their children how to live 
was repeatedly manifested by their ready cooperation in any plan which involved them. Those who 
promised in the first place that attendance upon the class should be as regular as school attendance 
faithfully kept their word. In several cases this decision meant that dancing school must be given 
up in favor of the class. Their over-appreciation of the enterprise was shown in such comments as, 
“A is a different boy since the classes began. He is so thoughtful and considerate. Even 
his father has noticed the difference. Let me know if I can help in any way.” They were as 
good as their word. A telephone call rallied them with anything from offers of cakes to needles and 
thimbles, and at any expression of gratitude from the leader the response came, “Who should do 
it if not the mothers? We certainly appreciate what is being done for our children.” 

After special effort put forth in any direction these mothers were sure to tell the leader just how 
the result was showing at home. For they and the day-schoo! teachers knew that the test of success 
of any course in religious education is not in how many passages of Scripture, hymns, or other beau- 
tiful poems have been learned, though these are bound to come in as a part of a program growing out 
of children’s religious needs. Rather it lies in answers to such questions as these: Are the children 
a little more kindly, a little more thoughtful and unselfish, a little more truthful and obedient, a little 
fairer in games, a little less quarrelsome and more self-controlled, a little more loving and helpful, a 
little readier to do hard tasks, a little more cheerful in the face of disappointment, — at home, in 
school and on the playground? Thus mothers and day-school teachers can best measure the success 
or failure of any course which aims to lead the children to the feet of the great Teacher. 

The record of the growth and trying out of this course is now placed at the disposal of leaders who 
are interested in a unified program of Sunday and weekday religious education, and who wish to 
use it as a basis for a similar enterprise. 

The programs as originally outlined by the committee are given, together with the detailed re- 
ports from the two experiment stations. These records show how differently the course was used 
by different leaders, demonstrating both the elasticity of the programs and the possibility of shaping 
them to every new group. They contain much more material than can be used, but not too much 
to select from. The records show how certain stories were used in one group, and certain sugges- 
tions taken over bodily, while the other group selected others of the stories and discarded entirely 
the suggestions given. 

The faithful setting down of incidents as they occurred, however unrelated to the program as 
planned, together with the method of dealing with them at the time or later, is not done because 
any one leader considers herself an authority on ways of handling difficulties. On the contrary, 
the leader often appears in an extremely poor light. They are recorded because they happened 
and Jed to changes or modifications of plans, as is shown. The verbatim responses of children are 
sometimes encouraging, sometimes the opposite, but they are actually true, and often indicate how 
the leader is failing or succeeding. 


The Two Experiment Stations 


School A was located in a New England village. The entire third grade of the church school, 
thirteen in number, were members of both weekday and Sunday classes. On Sunday the worship 
was in common with the rest of the department, conducted by the superintendent, who was also 
teacher of the third grade and leader of the weekday class. 

The Sunday session was held directly after ¢hurch, from twelve to one. The weekday session 
was on Saturday morning from nine-thirty to eleven. Attendance was not obligatory. The co- 
operation of the parents and the children’s own interest kept attendance absolutely regular with eight, 
and only a little less so with the others. The expenses were met from the church budget. 

This class started on the first Sunday in October and continued without interruption through 
Children’s Day, the second Sunday of the following June. 

School B was located in a northern city. Of the twenty-two children in the third grade of this 
church school nine made up the weekday class. The superintendent of the entire department was 
leader of the weekday class. The third grade on Sunday was so large that it held its worship 


xii FOREWORD 


services separate from the rest of the department. These were conducted by the assistant super- 
intendent, who used the Sunday worship material suggested in this course. International Graded 
Lessons were used in the Sunday classes, so the material here given for Sunday class work was not 
used, except in part. The keynote which the programs struck on Sunday, the weekday leader used 
as a prelude for her weekday session. 

Reports from this school, therefore, are from two different sources, the teacher of the week- 
day class, and the leader of the worship period on Sundays. The Sunday session was held from 
nine-thirty to ten-thirty, the weekday on Thursday afternoon from three forty-five to five. 

Regularity of attendance was secured by registration cards signed by parents, who promised 
to place this on a par with day school. 

Expenses were met by the church budget. This station was a part of a graded school for week- 
day religious education, and opening was delayed. ‘The first occasion, therefore, that any material 
from this course was used was on the first weekday session, November first. 

For assistance in the planning of the course, for their criticism of the material as developed and 
for experimentation upon it, the writer is indebted to the following people: 

Dr. Benjamin S. Winchester 
Dr. Hugh S. Hartshorne 
Miss Frances Weld Danielson 
Mrs. Millacent P. Yarrow 
Mrs. Lansing A. Lewis 

Miss Florence Morrison 


Time Division of Sunday Sessions 


The course begins with the first Sunday in October. As there are no previous programs with 
which to connect, a seasonal theme is suggested for the first Sunday’s worship. 

The individual leader and her class will, as a rule, wish to plan their own worship services. What- 
ever material is given each week is intended to be merely suggestive. As an illustration of a seasonal 
worship service, however, as well as to show different ways of dividing a departmental session, the 
first Sunday’s worship program is given in detail with two different time divisions. A third is in- 
dicated. 

The pre-session period, used for practising songs, making scrap-books, other handwork, or 
story-telling, is taken for granted. 


Plan I. Four Periods 


First Departmental Period . : : A ; : : 10 minutes 
(Opening Service of Worship) 
First Class Period ; : . : : : : 15 minutes 
(Classes Separated by Grades) 
Second Departmental Period Z : : f : 15 minutes 
(Worship and Fellowship) 
Second Class Period . d , 15 minutes 


(Classes Separated by Grades) 
: : : é . : 5 minutes 


Brief Dismissal . 


60 minutes 


(For advantages in this arrangement read Methods for Primary Teachers, by Hazel A. Lewis, 
pages 60-62, 104-106. This is the plan followed in outlining the programs in this course, although, 
as will be seen by the two sample sessions, the same material may be used with a different time ar- 
rangement.) 


FOREWORD 


Plan II. Two Periods 


Departmental Worship Period 
Class Period 2 


Closing Service . 


Plan If. Three Periods 


First Class Period ; 
Departmental Worship Period 
Second Class Period . 

Brief Dismissal . 


(Classes Separated by Grades) 


. 20-25 minutes 


30-35 minutes 


5-10 minutes 


60 minutes 


15 minutes 
25 minutes 
15 minutes 

5 minutes 


60 minutes 


xiii 


FIRST SUNDAY 
October 


(Worship material in this and following pro- 
grams is arranged according to Plan I, the plan 
followed by both experiment schools; children’s 
responses are noted where they actually occurred; 
other reports of Schools A and B at close of 
programs.) 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 
(Ten minutes) 


Quiet Music Ending with Song. ‘“ This Is 
God’s House,” (Songs for Little People). 

Reading. I was glad when they said unto me, 
Let us go into the house of the Lord. — Ps. 
hey tees 

Conversation. I’m always particularly glad 
to come into his house after Promotion Day; 
there are so many new children here. We shall 
miss the class that has left us, so we are glad you 
have come to take their places. 

Then I’m always especially glad to come here 
when I’ve seen something wonderful which the 
heavenly Father has done that I want to talk 
about. ‘‘ This is God’s house,” and we come to 
it on his day on purpose to talk about him, and 
to him, and hear stories from his Book. I like to 
bring things to his house that remind us of him. 

FLorrie (suddenly pointing to the autumn 
decorations): The leaves! 

Last week William said he wanted to bring his 
engine, because God made the iron for it, — do 
you remember? And we found a verse in God’s 
Book about the deep places of the earth where 
God hides the iron. I have seen this week some- 
thing else which the heavenly Father did, and “ I 
was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into 
the house of the Lord,” because I wanted to talk 
about it. I have seen something wonderful. 

(For the following may be substituted the de- 
scription of a beautiful sunset after a stormy day, 
or the emerging from its chrysalis of a butterfly.) 

A week ago I drove through a lovely valley of 
green trees and shrubs and meadows. Yesterday 
I drove through the same valley, but it was dif- 
ferent. Something wonderful had taken place! 
It wasn’t all green trees and shrubs. God had 
done something to them. A whole tree was 
bright red. Another was yellow. One was green 
except the tips of the leaves. They were red. 


I couldn’t have done it. No man or woman 
could. Only God could have done anything so 
wonderful. 

A song keeps running in my head, a song we 
have sung, but I have changed the words of part 
of it because the autumn trees were so wonderful 
that I felt like singing about them instead of 
about flowers. Would you like to sing my 
wonder-song? I have written it on the board 
for you. And then let’s bow our heads and say 
our thanks. 


“We thank thee, oh, our Father, 

For all thy loving care; 

We thank thee that thou madest 
The earth so bright and fair. 

We thank thee for the seasons 
That show thy work divine, 

For changes round us telling 
New wonders that are thine.” 


Song. 


Prayer. Dear heavenly Father, thy gifts to 
us make us want to sing to thee and to speak to 
thee. Help us always to see in everything around 
us the work of thy love, and always feel like 
thanking thee, and pleasing thee. Amen. 

Offering. Jesus told us of another way we 
could show God that we love him and feel like 
thanking him. He said that helping others would 
show it. So we bring our gifts to his house. The 
money we bring to send away to help other chil- 
dren. Let us tell our heavenly Father that we 
want our gifts to help others. 


Prayer. 


‘* Father, bless the gifts we bring thee, 
Give them something sweet to 
do; 
May they help some one to love 
thee; 
Father, may we love thee too.” 


(If the conditions are favorable, it would be 
ideal to have this service out-of-doors where the 
trees in their glory may be seen. The children 
would at the close march back at once to their 
classes, chairs having been placed for them in the 
meantime by assistants. If the service is indoors, 
the children pass to their classes at the close of 
the brief worship period. To make this change 


2 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


expeditiously and in orderly fashion where chairs 
have to be moved, use four chords and march 
music. First chord: children sit in position, lap 
emptied; second: rise; third: face chairs; fourth: 
lift chairs by the seat and march to classes.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


(Fifteen minutes) 


Norte: This is generally used to recall the last 
Sunday’s story or weekday experience by discus- 
sion or some expressional activity, in preparation 
for the new material. Today, being the first 
Sunday, the new material — generally presented 
last — will be given first. Have on hand the fol- 
lowing pictures from the International Graded 
Lessons: “The Boy Jesus in the Temple,” 
“Jesus and the Children,” ‘‘ Feeding the Five 
Thousand,” Primary Picture Set No. 2, and 
“ Jesus Teaching His Disciples to Pray,” Pri- 
mary Picture Set No. 3. 

(The first story tries to make learning how to 
live a universal occupation for all of God’s crea- 
tures, and Jead the children to the feet of Jesus 
as the Master Teacher. At this time the leader 
guides the children’s talk to schools.) 

How many schools do you go to, John, Dora? 
Do any but children go to school? Do animals? 
Grown-up people? 


CHILDREN’S Responses: “ Babies, or 
how could they learn anything? ” 

“Home is the best school to learn 
things.” 

‘| know the birds go to school, because 
I heard a lot of them saying good-bye to 
another bird as they flew away from 
her.” 


Story. 
In Happy VALLEY 


There was once a town which was so new that 
it had in it, so far, only houses and a church. 
Some day you will hear how the town was dis- 
covered, and how the families moved in, but 
today I want to tell you what some children in 
it found out. 

As there had been no time yet to build a school, 
the children in the families occupied themselves 
in all sorts of ways, helping with the new houses, 
taking care of the animals and playing with each 
other. 

One day several of them who had been playing 


together a long time grew tired of their game, and 
sat down to rest. 

“‘Isn’t it funny to have no school? ” said Alice, 
for of course they had gone to school regularly 
before they came to Happy Valley, the name of 
their new home. 

“IT shouldn’t mind school,” said Billy, “if we 
didn’t have to work so hard learning things.” 


School A. Joun: Oho! That’s all the 
good of school. 


“Tt’s no fair making us children go to school 
all the time. Nobody else has to. I'd rather be 
a dog or a cat or a baby or something.” 

“Or else be all grown-up,” added Freddy. 
‘“‘ When you're old you don’t have to go to school.” 

Nobody knows what would have been said 
next, for sombody shouted, ‘“‘ There’s Miss True! ” 
and the children jumped up as if an electric but- 
ton had been touched which sent them flying 
down the street. 

Miss True seemed to be the friend of every 
child in town. She dropped the hand of one now 
to wave to the boys and girls running toward her. 

Martha and Alice were still laughing at Billy 
and Freddy. 

‘What do you think, Miss True)” they 
giggled. ‘‘ We were talking about school, and 
Freddy and Billy said they wished they could be 
dogs or cats or babies or grown-up people so they 
wouldn’t have to learn things.” 

‘Oh, you are funny children!” laughed Miss 
True. ‘Don’t you know that everybody — 
there! I don’t believe Ill tell you!” 

‘Oh, please go on!”’ the children clamored, in- 
terested because it sounded like asecret. ‘‘ Every 
body whai?”’ But Miss True wouldn’t tell them. 

“I’m taking some catnip to Mrs. Gray,” said 
Miss True. “ Want to come too?” Mrs. Gray 
was Miss True’s cat. Of course the children 
wanted to visit her. 

But Mrs. Gray was not at home. The children 
looked everywhere. It was Billy who spied her 
at last coming through the field back of Miss 
True’s house. She was carrying a_half-dead 
mouse in her mouth and leading her four kittens. 

“‘ Well, Mrs. Gray,” said Miss True, “ did they 
learn their lesson well today? I think,” she ex- 
plained, turning to the children, “she’s been 
taking her children into the field to show them 
where to find mice. It’s one of their ways of 
living, you know, catching mice. Perhaps she 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 3 


hasn’t finished her lesson. Let’s watch.’ So 
they watched while Mrs. Gray led her kittens 
into the shed and laid the mouse upon the floor. 

It seemed dazed at first, but the moment it 
stirred Mrs. Gray was ready to pounce upon it. 

“Why, she’s teaching them how to catch mice! ” 
exclaimed Billy, for sure enough, one of the kit- 
tens, looking like a small imitation of her mother, 
suddenly crouched and sprang just as her mother 
had. 

“I didn’t know the baby kittens had to learn 
things like that,”’ said Alice, and Miss True said, 
“They have to learn to live, you see.” 

They turned away from the shed. “I’m going 
down to the church to sort out some pictures,” 
she went on. “If you’d like to help me, I’d love 
to have you.” 

They started down the street, scufiling through 
the leaves as they went, it made such a pleasant 
sound. Ahead of them boys were raking more 
leaves to put on a big bonfire. 

“Oh, dear!’ cried Alice, in a frightened voice, 
“look at that baby, — he’s going right into the 
bonfire and he’ll get burned!’ She ran forward, 
and the others followed. 

A tiny child was indeed toddling toward the 
fire, but every now and again he stopped and 
looked back. They needn’t have feared that no 
one was trying to save him, for as they drew near 
they heard a voice repeating firmly, “ No, no, 
baby, no, no!” It was the baby’s mother, whom 
they had not seen at first, and it was her voice 
which made the baby stop and look around every 
few steps. 

“Why doesn’t she go and snatch him away? ”’ 
exclaimed Patty, fairly jumping up and down in 
her excitement. That was what she wanted to 
do herself. 

“She’s trying to teach him to mind without 
hurting himself first,’’ Miss True told her. 

“* Oh, dear, I hope he does! ’’ wailed Alice. 
don’t want him to be hurt!” 

They watched. The baby took another step 
forward. 

* No, no,” said the mother again, as he looked 
around. 

He seemed to be saying to himself, ‘‘ Mother is 
very strange not to want me to find out about 
that nice bright thing. But she probably has her 
reasons, and I might as well make her happy and 
do what she wants.” He gave a little crowing 
sound and ran back into his mother’s outstretched 


a | 


arms, and anybody, even the baby, who was 
hugged and kissed and told what a good boy he 
was, could have seen that it did make her happy. 

“Lucky thing for him he minded,” observed 
Billy as they walked on. 

“We all have to learn,”’ said Miss True, as if 
she were talking to herself. ‘“He’s starting 
school before he realizes it.” 

“School!”? echoed Martha and Freddy to- 
gether. 

* When I say ‘ school,’ you see,” explained Miss 
True hastily, “I mean whatever teaches you to 
live.” 

Alice thought about the kittens and began to 
laugh. ‘‘ Were the kittens going to school, then, 
Miss True? Oh, ho!” But to their surprise 
Miss True answered, “I suppose they were.” 

At the church Miss True put a pile of pictures 
on the table, saying, “ One or two are going on 
the walls. Do you want to help me choose 
which? ” 

They gathered around her eagerly. As they 
looked over the pictures they talked about them. 
One was like this. (Show “ The Boy Jesus in the 
Temple.’’) 


School A. Showing pictures inter- 
rupted the story. Another time the 
leader would wait until close of story. 


“What is Jesus doing?” they asked Miss 
True. 

“He is learning from the wise men in the 
temple; that was the way boys went to school in 
those days.” 

“School!’”’ said the children to each other. 
There it was again. They couldn’t seem to get 
away from the idea. Even Jesus went to school. 

** What is he doing there? ” asked Franklin, and 
held up a picture like this. (Show “ Jesus Feed- 
ing the Five Thousand.”) You know the story 
of it, and so did Franklin, but Miss True told it 
to them again. 

The children looked at the picture silently. 
They felt that they loved this man who was so 
kind, and who couldn’t bear to have the people 
go away from him hungry. Miss True went on 
looking through the pile. 

“* He was always teaching people how to live,” 
she said. ‘“‘ Oh, here he is with his special pupils. 
He called them disciples, for a disciple means one 
who learns.” She showed them this. (Show 
“Jesus Teaching His Disciples to Pray.”’) 


4 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


One of the children said, ‘‘ They look as if they 
were going to school to him, don’t they? Only 
the school’s out-of-doors.” 

“They’re kind of old to be going to school,” 
said Billy. “ But I guess nobody was too old to 
go to school to Jesus.” 

“Or too young,” 
them this. (Show ‘“ Christ Blessing Little Chil- 
dren,” still keeping the other pictures in sight.) 

The children looked from one to another of the 
pictures. In one Jesus was helping people. 
How kind he was! In another he was teaching. 
The disciples must have loved their teacher, they 
were listening so hard. In the third he was 
showing that he was the friend of little children. 

Nothing was said for a long time as Miss True 
held the pictures for them. 

Then Alice said, “ I’d like to go to school to 
him.” 

“* Anybody would,’ declared Freddy. 

They chose these three pictures to be hung on 
the wall and left a little while after that. But it 
wasn’t until after they had gone to their homes 
that Billy suddenly realized that he’d changed 
his mind about some things. If little babies and 
even animals were learning all the time how to 
live, he certainly didn’t care to have them getting 
ahead of him and finding out more than he did. 
School wasn’t so bad after all. 

Even grown-up people didn’t stop learning. 
Why, everybody —and then, do you know, he 
finished Miss True’s sentence all of a sudden. 
Everybody — he knew what she was going to 
say. He couldn’t wait to tell the others. What 
do you think it was? 


SEVERAL CHILDREN: 
to school? 

(After the story the children will look at and 
handle the pictures shown, making their own 
comments.) 

School A. Joun: Oh, I wish J could 
have gone to school to him! 
(Same response in School B.) 


Everybody goes 


(Note children’s attitude and comments to 
build upon later. In showing ‘“ Christ Blessing 
the Children ”’ lead their thoughts to the song, 
“1 Think, when I Read that Sweet Story.”’ Ask 
if they would like to sing it for the rest, in the 
next worship period, or if they would like to 
have the department sing it.) 


Chords and March to Assembly. 


added Miss True, showing 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 
(Fifteen minutes) 


Song. (Leader explains that the third-grade 
class has a song they would like to have the de- 
partment sing. She asks one child to stand in 
front, holding the picture for the song, “TI 
Think, when I Read that Sweet Story of Old.”) 

Birthday Service. Nore: Some departments 
recognize birthdays each week, other larger de- 
partments once a month. They are purposely 
not indicated in these outlines, the writer taking 
for granted that each leader will prefer her own 
method and time for conducting the service. If 
it is a part of the worship program, however, care 
should be taken to keep it worshipful. We are 
trying to “interpret the child’s surroundings re- 
ligiously.” A birthday offers another chance to 
remind him that his heavenly Father cares how 
he grows, is pleased by his successes and disap- 
pointed if he fails. We find no place, therefore, 
for birthday cakes or other artificial accessories. 

The following is an illustration of a birthday 
service which can be made impressive. 


Leaver: A few minutes ago we were talking 
about wonderful things God does. Did you ever 
think of growing up as wonderful? 


Once I heard a story about a child who went 
into a garden one day and kneeled down by a 
pool of water. The garden was very young, with 
only tiny trees starting to grow in it. The child 
looked into the water. He gazed for a long time, 
and while he gazed something strange happened. 
He changed from a child to a tall boy, then to a 
young man, and finally, when he looked up again, 
he was an old man with a gray beard, and the 
garden was grown up all around him. ‘There 
were great trees so tall that he could not see their 
tops. He stood in wonder. 


But that is just what does happen, isn’t it? 
While we are not even thinking about it, God is 
changing us from babies to children, and from 
children to men and women. It is wonderful 
whether it takes an hour to do it, or sixty years. 

John and Ada have birthdays this week. 
(Have them come forward.) 

I like to think of our heavenly Father who gave 
us life in the first place watching us and helping 
us as we grow from babies to children, and from 
children to men and women. John and Ada are 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 5 


a year older, and taller and stronger and wiser 
than they were a year ago. He is watching to 
see just how they are growing, just as he watched 
his Son Jesus, and is proud and glad when his 
other children grow more like Jesus. 

(Use the new version of ‘‘ We Thank Thee, oh, 


Our Father,” substituting “ our birthdays” for . 


“the seasons.” 


“We thank thee for our birthdays 
That show thy work divine, 
For changes round us telling 
New wonders that are thine.” 


Follow this by the birthday offering.) 
Songs and Conversation. (Depending upon 
time and children’s observations.) 
Prayer. (Gathering up the main thoughts 
brought out in the two worship periods.) 
Chords and March to Classes. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 
(Fifteen minutes) 
(Talk with the class about meeting on a week- 
day. Find out: 
1. What the children would like to do during 
the year, making a note of their suggestions 


before them, — stories, hikes, games, work, dra- 
matizations, etc.) 

CHILDREN’S SUGGESTIONS: Parties, 
stories, plays, “ let’s sing lots,”’ ‘‘ sew dolls’ 
clothes,” ‘saw wood,” “‘ write verses,” 
“go on hikes,” “ go snowshoeing in the 
winter,” “go. skiing,” “play games,” 
“have races,” ‘play baseball,’ ‘ build 
snow forts,’ march, dance, eat. 

2. What they shall call themselves — club, 
class, band, group. 

JoHn: Oh, yes, we’ve got to have a 
name, like “the Masons.” 

3. What they shall do on the first weekday 
meeting. Suggest, if they do not, a hike for 
autumn decorations for Sunday school, or a 
nutting party. Ask if they have been talking in 
school about such outdoor things as nests and 
cocoons, which they might collect on the hike. 
Plan what to do with any nuts, and suggest 
using autumn flowers and leaves for both Sunday 
and day school, — Sunday school first if the hike 
is on Saturday, otherwise day school first. 


School A. As no nuts were near 
enough, we decided to hike for autumn 
leaves to decorate church. 


BRIEF DISMISSAL 


ALTERNATE FIRST SUNDAY 
October 
(Worship material arranged according to Plan II) 


DEPARTMENTAL WORSHIP PERIOD 


(Twenty to twenty-five minutes) 


Quiet Music Ending with Song. 

(For details under this and following headings 
see First Sunday.) 

Reading. 

Conversation. 

Song. 

Prayer. 

Offering. 


March. 

Prayer. 

Song. A familiar one, chosen by the children. 
Birthday Service. 

Songs and Conversation. 


Prayer. 
Chords and March to Classes. 


CLASS PERIOD 
(Thirty to thirty-five minutes) 
BRIEF DISMISSAL 


FIRST WEEKDAY 
A Hike 


1. Games Which Can Be Played 


Follow My Leader; Duck on the Rock. 

Roadside Cribbage. A certain number of 
counts are accredited to the child who first 
catches sight of specified objects. For instance, 
a squirrel may count five, a rabbit ten, a bird’s- 
nest five, a cocoon ten. The objects and number 
of points for each one may be decided upon 
together. 

Nut or Leaf Pass. Like Peanut Pass. Two 
parallel lines face each other. At the end of 
each is a supply of nuts or autumn leaves. No. 1 
takes one, passes it to No. 2 and takes another as 
quickly as possible, the same number of nuts to 
be passed on each side. End one of each line 
puts them in pile. First line whose pile is finished 
beats. 

Two Deep. Like Three Deep, except that 
children form in single instead of double circle. 

Japanese Tag. One who is It must chase 
others, holding his hand on the place where the 
last chaser tagged him. 

It is possible that the children will introduce 
the subject of school, which will lead to talk of 
animal schools. If they do not, the game Follow 
My Leader will introduce it, or a reference to last 
Sunday’s story about all of God’s creatures 
“going to school.” (See Handbook of Nature 
Study, by Anna Botsford Comstock, on the edu- 
cation of young animals and games played by 
lambs.) 

2. An Autumn Story to Tell 

“Goldenrod and Aster,” from The Children’s 
Hour, by Bailey and Lewis. One of the children 
may offer to retell this in school, or if the group 
represents several rooms in school, one from each 
group. Leader will provide for this by sending 
notes to teachers saying John or Mary has a 
story to tell. 


If nuts are gathered, decide what to do with 
them; get as many interesting bits of nature as 
possible to carry to school, as well as flowers and 
autumn leaves for decorations. 

3. Familiar Autumn Songs 

Such songs will lead naturally to the suggestion 
that this little group plan the worship service for 
the following Sunday, with the idea of sharing 
with the whole department the pleasure of this 


day. There may be a chance for out-of-door 
worship. 
4. Return to the Church 

Decorate it, if it is Saturday; if the middle of 
the week, the children may make autumn bou- 
quets for their schoolrooms. 
5. Planning a Worship Service 

The leader explains how she prepares a service 
of worship, sharing with the class the reasons for 
and meaning of each part. She brings illustra- 
tions from a typical church service or one used 
recently in the department. Then the children 
take song-books, choose hymns and _ practise 
them, selecting verses which would be appropriate, 
and help to arrange the order of the material 
used. 


Alternative for Hike 


Leader brings leaves and flowers to church 
school, where the children meet instead of having 
an outdoor session. The children decorate the 
room, if it is Saturday; perhaps hear an autumn 
story like “ Goldenrod and Aster,” which one 
offers to retell in school; (in this event the leader 
sends a note to the teacher saying that Henry or 
Mary has an autumn story to tell); sing autumn 
songs and practise others; plan a worship period 
for the following Sunday. If the session is in the 
middle of the week, the children can make up 
bouquets for teachers. 


Report of School A on Hike 


Played, Follow My Leader while in town (the 
only way to keep the twelve together and in 
order); then Roadside Cribbage. Talked 
about play of animals teaching them how to live. 
Leader told ‘Goldenrod and Aster.” Anne 
offered to retell it in school. 

Children not in the mood for outdoor worship 
except for two or three brief moments under a 
tree after a boy had found a bird’s-nest hidden 
among the autumn leaves. We sang, “ We 
Thank Thee, oh, Our Father.”’ Children wel- 
comed the idea of planning their own worship 
service, — except John. 

Group returned almost buried beneath their 
load of autumn leaves. They decorated not only 
the Primary room, but the church auditorium. 
Children seemed to see parts of auditorium for 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 7 


the first time; asked what the baptismal font was 
for. Leader told of Jesus’ baptism. John, sit- 
ting in front seat, noticed carving on communion 
table: “This do in remembrance of me.” An- 
other chance for a story of Jesus, and to interpret 
church symbolism. (See report of School A on 
Second Class Period of Seventh Sunday, to show 
how this interest was followed up.) 

They planned a service to be used on the fol- 
lowing day, but the boys were not interested after 
the first few minutes. Songs were chosen from 
those familiar, and a new one, “ Autumn Day,” 
was selected and practised. Leader was asked to 
put it on the board. A song learned in school 
was spoken of. 

FRANKIE: That would be good,- because the 
second grade knows it, too. 

Anne: I know an autumn poem, “ The Golden- 
rod is Yellow.” 

Joun: Aw, we all know that; we learned it in 
school. 

FRANKIE: Let’s all say it then. 

Stuart: You tell a story, Miss Bradley. 

Manion: Tell “ Goldenrod and Aster,” so they 
can all hear it. 

Exinor: Anne could tell it. It would be prac- 
tising for when she tells it in school. 

LeavER: We mustn’t forget who it is that gives 
all these autumn gifts. The service is to praise 
and worship Him, you know. What could we 
put in our prayer? 

OnE Cuitp: You could pray, and we could all 
sing, ‘ Father, we thank thee,” at the end. 

Leaver: What shall I pray about? Let’s 
think of what we’ve sung and talked about. 
We’ve said we were in God’s house, and thanked 
him in songs for his loving care and for his 
autumn gifts. What else can we do? 

ANOTHER CuiLp: We can bring our money. 

LEADER: How shall we bring it? In the church 
the minister sometimes says a verse about giving. 
Sometimes we sing a song while we bring our 
offering. 

ANNE: I know a verse, ‘‘ Freely ye received, 
freely give.”’ (Leader found those words are set 
to music, and the children decided to use the 
song. All practised singing it.) 

LEADER: We were thinking of what we could 
put in our prayer. Saying ‘ Thank you” is not 
all we put in our prayers. 

AnnE: We could ask God to help us to be good. 

Fiorrie: We could ask him to help us make 


others happy, like those little girls in the story. 

(See result of this planning in the next program. 
For a description of other worship services 
planned by the children see discussion and re- 
ports of a Thanksgiving worship service, Sixth, 
Seventh and Eighth Sundays; a Christmas pro- 
gram, Twelfth Sunday; a spring worship service 
planned by boys, Twenty-fourth Sunday; an 
Easter program, Twenty-ninth Sunday; and a 
Children’s Day program, Thirty-sixth Sunday.) 

Report of School B on Indoor Session 

Our first session was held on a weekday, 
November first, indoors. A child’s opening re- 
mark on coming into the familiar Primary room, 
“Isn’t it nice to come here some other day be- 
sides Sunday? ”’ led the leader at once to suggest 
the song, “‘ This is God’s house, and he is here 
today.” 

The question, ‘ What other schools do you go 
to?” led to the discovery by one that home was 
a school where children learned all the time. 

After asking if any but children go to school, 
and getting answers, the leader told the first 
Happy Valley story given in the first Sunday 
program; showed suggested pictures during tell- 
ing of story, and after the story the children 
talked about them. ‘‘ Jesus Teaching the Dis- 
ciples to Pray ”’ reminded the class of the outdoor 
session of the church school held in the park 
during Children’s Week with the entire school 
and many visitors present. The talk about Jesus 
as a teacher brought just the response that was 
desired for “ going to school to Jesus.’’ We sang 
“T Think, when I Read that Sweet Story,” and 
started our note-books. Following the thought 
given in the worship material for First Sunday, 
the children drew pictures to remind them of how 
God’s work is shown in nature. They also made 
lists of all who “go to school.” We sang, 
“Father, we thank thee,” for all his wonderful 
work, and played a few games. 

There was interesting conversation about 
teachers and schools generally, revealing the fact 
that the private school pupils had more ‘“‘ freedom 
of speech’ than those from public school. Dis- 
cussion: Which course should they follow in 
weekday school? Decision: A happy medium. 

Children asked to help put away supplies. 
Never known before! 

A mother came for a child who had not wanted 
to come to the class — “ her play time had been 
spoiled ’’—but found the child teasing to stay. 


SECOND SUNDAY 
October 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 


(All the worship material may come in one 
period. See Alternate First Sunday.) 


Opening Service of Worship 


(To be prepared and conducted in part or en- 
tirely by the children.) 


What School A Did 
Chords and March to Classes. 


Autumn leaves from the hike decorated the 
room. After the quiet music, “ This is God’s 
House,” leader explained that the third grade 
wished the whole department to share the pleas- 
ure of their walk, and had arranged an autumn 
service in which they hoped all would join. 

Call to Worship. “This is God’s House,” 
(by third grade). 

Praise Song. “We Thank Thee, oh, Our 
Father,” (new version). 

Conversation. About autumn_ trophies 
brought into the department. George, with 
horse-chestnuts, Lena, with branch of scarlet 
autumn leaves, John, with bird’s-nest, rose while 
the third grade sang song which they had prac- 
tised. 

Song. “ Autumn Day.” 

Offering Song. “Freely ye received, freely 
give.” 

Offering Prayer. Ending with the song re- 
sponse, ‘‘ Father, we thank thee.” 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Response to Old Stories. (Refer to last 
Sunday’s story and have it retold. Additional 
matter discovered by children on subject of ani- 
mals “ going to school” should be discussed. 
Get suggestions as to next weekday session.) 


School A. The story was retold by all 
the children. The part which the leader 
bungled by poor handling of pictures, the 
children now had impressed upon them in 
the review. Same responses as last Sun- 
day, wishing they could have had Jesus as 
their teacher. When leader suggested 
that it was still possible one boy said, 
“ Well, let’s then. I’d like that.” Others 
eager. Leader said she had a great many 


pictures of Jesus teaching, and each pic- 
ture had a story. 

Exinon: We could look at them on 
Saturdays! 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 
(This period will also be planned for by the 
children.) 
What School A Did 
‘‘The Goldenrod is Yellow,” (recited 


Poem. 
in chorus). 

Autumn Song. 
grade child.) 

Another Song. ‘“ Autumn Day.” 

Story. “Goldenrod and Aster,” 
Anne). 

Prayer. Thanking God for autumn gifts and 
asking that we might have thoughts like those of 
Golden Hair and Blue Eyes in the story, i.e.,. 
the wish to make everybody happy. 


(Led by Barbara, a second- 


(told by 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


The New Story. 
How Scnoots Came To Happy VALLEY 

Happy Valley was a very busy place. Per- 
haps it was because it was such a new town. 
There is always so much to do to a place where 
no people have ever lived. There was the wood 
to be hauled from the mountains to be sawed 
into boards to build new houses; there were 
gardens to be planted and cows and chickens and 
pigs to be raised, so there would be plenty of 
food. So far the only building that had been 
put up was the church. One morning, soon after 
Freddie and Billy and Alice and the rest took 
their walk with Miss True, little Jimmy Marks 
took from the bookcase a big book filled with 
pictures and printing. The pictures he could 
read, but not the printing. 

That was nothing to Jimmy but a mass of 
puzzling black marks. He wished he knew what 
they meant. They told more about the pictures 
than he could see in the pictures themselves. 
He ran to the kitchen where his mother was 
packing lunch in a box for his father. Every 
morning Jimmy’s father started off early to haul 
wood down from the mountains. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 9 


“ Mother,” said Jimmy, “ when are you going 
to teach me to read? ” 

“O Jimmy,” answered his mother, “I wish I 
knew! Every day I think I shall have time to 
begin, but these are such busy days.” She 
snapped the lunch box shut and hurried with it 
in to his father, who was just finishing his break- 
fast. 

Jimmy ate his own breakfast, and as soon as 
he had finished said, ‘‘ Mother, can’t you start 
to teach me now? ” 

His mother was clearing the table and getting 
out the dish-pan. 

“ Jimmy,” she said, “I believe I will try to 
start today — just as soon as I get my work 
done.” 

Jimmy was so happy that he tried to turn a 
somersault. Then he ran outdoors and raced 
around the house three times. When he came in, 
hoping that his mother’s work would be done, he 
found her giving the baby a bath and heating her 
bottle of milk. So he sat down with his book to 
wait. As soon as the baby was fed his mother 
began to wash some clothes, and he looked his 
_ book through and through. It was filled with 
those queer, meaningless, black marks. Even the 
pictures were queer before you knew what they 
meant. He took the book in to his mother. 

** What are those pictures, mother? ” he asked. 

“They’re maps, dear,” she answered. ‘‘ The 
different colors show the parts of the world where 
the wheat for our bread and cereal comes from, 
and the chocolate and rice. Won’t it be nice 
when you can read all about it for yourself? ” 
She went on rubbing the clothes she was washing. 

“Yes,” said Jimmy, his eyes sparkling. “When 
will your work be done, mother? ”’ 

“Sooner, if you help me,” she answered, so he 
helped her pin the clothes on the line. Then they 


made the beds and after she swept the dining- 


room and sitting-room, Jimmy dusted. Then 
they took a basket and went into the garden. 
Jimmy picked asters and calendula blossoms while 
his mother got some vegetables for dinner. He 
helped her husk the corn, wash the lettuce and 
scrub the potatoes. 

Then his mother sifted some flour and broke 
some eggs into a bowl and began to make a cake. 
She put the potatoes and the cake into the oven, 
put the corn in a kettle of boiling water on the 
stove, and then began to dust the rooms she had 
swept and to put them in order. By that time 


it was time for dinner, and after dinner the dishes 
had to be washed, and the clothes, which were 
dry now, brought in from the line and sprinkled. 


School A. Children’s attention wan- 
dered. Probably bored by story. Cer- 
tainly absorbed in the antics of a fly. 

LEADER (after fly had departed): I don’t 
wonder you weren’t so interested in the 
things Jimmy’s mother was doing. Jimmy 
wasn’t either. He thought she’d never 
get through, but they had to be done.” 
(Attention returned.) 


“Get your cap, Jimmy,” his mother said, 
‘and we'll go take the baby for an airing.” 
Jimmy walked along beside her, asking her ques- 
tions about this and that — as he had been doing 
all day. Some she answered, and to others she 
replied, “ I don’t know, Jimmy; some time when 
I’m not so busy I'll find out about it for you.” 

Jimmy hoped when they got back from the 
walk that there would be time to start to learn to 
read, but do you know, by the time his mother 
had ironed the clothes she had washed in the 
morning, and darned Jimmy’s stockings, and fed 
the baby again and put her to bed, it was supper 
time and his father’s step was heard on the porch. 

“There’s daddy, and the day’s all over,” 
laughed Jimmy. “ You were going to teach me 
to read when your work was done, and it never 
was done, was it?” They kissed each other 
good-night and his mother went down-stairs. 

He was just dropping off to sleep when he 
heard her say to his father, “‘ I must get some one 
to help me with Jimmy. He should learn to read, 
but I haven’t time to teach him. I don’t even 
know the answers to some of his questions, and 
haven’t time to find them. What shall we do? ” 

“My dear,” said Jimmy’s father, ‘“‘ all the other 
mothers have been wondering the same thing, so 
the fathers tell me. All of you mothers are far 
too busy to teach the children all they need to 
know. The men today were talking of asking 
Miss True to help us out. She has plenty of 
time for teaching and story-telling and finding 
the answers to questions, for she does nothing 
else.” 

“The very one!” exclaimed Jimmy’s mother 
in great relief. ‘‘ Let’s ask her tomorrow if she 
will take Jimmy.” 

That is how the first school started in Happy 


‘ 


10 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Valley. And I shouldn’t be at all surprised if it 
was the way schools happened to be everywhere — 
should you? 

(After this story make on the blackboard a list 
of things the children are finding out through their 
teacher which weren’t discovered at home. Show 
how ‘black marks” suddenly begin to have 
meaning, figures and signs have names and 
sounds and can be used; maps are not simply 
pink and blue spaces, but have stories to them. 
Let there be free discussions with experiences of 
children. Make their teacher appear almost in 
the light of a fairy godmother, not using the 
name, but attributing to her the power to work 
wonderful changes.) 


School A. Leader wrote some German 
script on a pad, and showed some Chinese 
writing, all of which was like mere “ black 
marks ”’ to the class. 

- (Close with a prayer thanking God for all those 
who help us learn to live; for our mothers and 
fathers who show us first of all; for our school 
teachers who are their helpers, teaching us what 
our parents cannot because they have so much 
else to do; for Jesus, who taught us not how to 
read and write, but how to be happy and make 
others happy. Use this at the end of the class 
period, or as a closing prayer for the whole de- 
partment, unless the children have provided for 
a dismissal service.) 


SECOND WEEKDAY 


Games, Discussion, Story and Plans for Teachers 


Games 


Games, impromptu dramatizations and other 
forms of play will be used each week, not only 
for their recreational benefit, and the working off 
of surplus energy, but because play is one of the 
means by which we learn to live with others. 

Valuable lessons in fairness, cooperation, chiv- 
alry, honesty, may be taught through play, and 
emergencies will arise which will make the bring- 
ing home of these lessons necessary at different 
times in every group. Therefore, instead of the 
writer’s furnishing games for each session, it will 
be left to the individual leader to provide the 
play for her own group. Descriptions of games 
popular with eight-year-old children will be 
found in The Church at Play and The Mayflower 
Program Book, Perkins and Danielson. 

Problems and difficulties are bound to come 
up, and the leader will meet each situation as she 
sees fit. She may interject a story, illustration 
or discussion which will help the children to stop 
and consider causes and effects on the spot, Or 
she may prefer to weave such material into her 
next program as she prepares it. Here follows 
a typical situation and ways of meeting it: 


1. Situation: Boys wanted to play Pom Pom 
Pull Away, girls, Jacob and Rachael. 

FLorRIE: Boys always want to play running 
games. I’m tired of running. 

Joun: Nobody wants to play sissy games. 

LeapER: What can we do? If the girls won’t 
play Pom Pom Pull Away, there won’t be enough 
to play at all, and if the boys won’t play Jacob 
and Rachael, there won’t be enough to play that. 

Anne: Let’s play something else we all like. 

Leaper: All right, what? 

Betty: Drop the handkerchief. 

Joun: Aw, that’s sissier’n the other! 
play Two Deep. 

FiorriE: I don’t want to run all the time. 


Leaver: We are just where we were before. 
Martian: Girls ought to have their choice. 


They always say “ Ladies first.” 
Leaver: Did you mean for the girls to play 
their choice first and the boys afterward? 
Martan: No, I meant the boys ought to do 
what we want. 


Let’s 


11 


Leaver: Oh, you meant “ Ladies first and 
gentlemen not at all.” Is that a rule? 

Martian: No, but — 

Leaver: Do you think it’s fair? 

(Silence.) 

FRANKIE: Let’s play ’em both. We can take 
turns. If you'll play our game, we'll play yours 
afterwards. Won't we, boys? 

Boys: Sure. 

Leaver: Is that fair, girls, to take turns? 

Grats: Yes. 

FRANKIE: Come on, then, [ll be It for Pom 
Pom Pull Away. 

LEADER: Wait a minute, boys. Gentlemen do 
have a rule, you know. Who has first choice 
according to the gentlemen’s rule? 

Joun: Ladies first. All right, boys, who’s 
Jacob? 

2. Situation — practically the same: 

LEADER: Oh, come on, boys! I’m going to 
play. Hurry up and get into the game. The 
girls will play yours afterwards. Don’t you know 
any game’s fun if you play it hard enough? 

(Boys joined in half-heartedly, but entered into 
the spirit of it finally.) 

Stuart: It’s funny, but sometimes my teacher 
wants me to do something, like a pasting job or 
something, and I don’t want to do it at all. And 
then I do it and get so interested she has a hard 
time getting me to stop! 

3. Situation — practically the same: 

Some discussion but not enough. Next ses- 
sion leader told “‘ The Gold Bugs,” a story of two 
gold bugs, neither one of which would play what 
the other wanted to, from Firelight Stories, by 
Carolyn S. Bailey. 

4. Situation — practically the same: 

Leaver: That first day we talked about going 
to school to Jesus. (Show again “ Jesus with his 
Disciples ” and “ Jesus Blessing the Children.’’) 
Some of us wished we could go ourselves, Do you 
think you’d like him for a teacher, John? Why? 
(Write answers on the board.) How do you 
know he was like that? Those very disciples — 
the first ones who went to school to him— told 
us so. It’s all in this Book. (Show Bible.) 

Why did they take the trouble to write every- 
thing down, Mary? (So every one could know 


12 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


what he taught them.) Does that mean that 
anybody that wants to can be a disciple or learner 
of his? Then we can go to school to him if we 
want to, can’t we? The whole point is, do we 
want to? 

It’s not often that children can pick out their 
own school teachers, is it? If you could, what 
kind would you choose? (Write answers on 
board.) The very best one there is, wouldn’t you? 
Can you think of any teacher being better than 
Jesus? If he were here this very moment, and 
we said, ‘“‘ Jesus, what should we do when half of 
us want to do one thing and half of us another? ” 
what do you think he would say? (Wait for 
answers. If there are none, open Bible to Luke 
6:31,—‘‘ As ye would that men should do to 
you, do ye also to them likewise.’’) 


Discussion of Sunday’s Service of Worship 


Training in worship will be an important part 
of the year’s program. During these months an 
endeavor will be made, by explanation, illustra- 
tions and opportunities to build services of their 
own, to help the children to an appreciation of 
true worship. Plans which children themselves 
have a share in making are naturally entered into 
more whole-heartedly than those superimposed 
upon them, and the working for a goal understood 
and adopted by themselves becomes “ purposeful 
activity.” 

The discussion, following such a service, of 
the weak and strong points in it, will suggest 
improvements which will lead to a better under- 
standing of real worship. The leader asks if last 
Sunday’s service satisfied every one. How could 
it have been improved? Did it go smoothly? 
Could we have known the songs better? 


School A. 
more.” 


“Yes, we ought to practise 


Did everybody join in? Have these children 
ever been to a church service? 


School A. ‘ Yes, but this wasn’t like 
church.” 


How was ours different? How could we make 
ours a more dignified gift, more worthy to be 
offered to our heavenly Father? (Write criti- 
cism on blackboard to refer to another week.) 
Would the class like to try another, making it as 
near right as possible? 


Joun: Naw, I don’t like that stuff. 

How long do you think it would take? What 
should be done in preparation? Isn’t it fortu- 
nate that we can meet on a weekday and practise 
for such things? What kind of a service should 
the next one be? 

(Possibly they will suggest working toward a 
Thanksgiving service, possibly one sooner. Let 
them be thinking about the subject during the 
week.) 


School A. Children suggested a 
Thanksgiving service. Elinor wanted to 
sing ‘Pumpkins Are Heaped in Piles.” 
Another wanted the new version of “ We 
thank thee, oh, our Father.” 

Tina (afterward to a friend): Our class 
is going to give a show Thanksgiving. 


Story 


(Introduce the story by asking if the children 
like fairy stories with fairy godmothers in them. 
If some don’t, ask if they like stories with dragons 
in them. Say that you have one about both a 
fairy godmother and dragons.) 


Tye Farry GoDMOTHER’s GIFTS 


Prince Hal and the Princess Gwendolin were 
two royal children who lived long ago in a dis- 
tant land. They were both quite small, but the 
princess looked up to her brother as if he were 
the bravest, handsomest hero in the world. The 
young prince was really only a little older than 
his golden-haired sister, but his mother had 
taught him to be gentle and courteous and pro- 
tecting, so that Gwendolin from babyhood had 
always run to him, if she was frightened or hurt. 
Hal adored his little sister; she seemed so help- 
less, and he felt strong and brave beside her. 
Since their father, the king, was away at war with 
the dragons, Hal considered himself Gwendolin’s 
sole protector. 

One day as they were playing in the palace 
garden a rider came galloping up on a black horse 
to tell them that the king had been killed, the 
dragons had won in the battle, and that all the 
land would now be under the dragons’ spell. 

The poor queen-mother fainted, and never 
opened her eyes again. Prince Hall held his little 
sister close to him, trying to protect her from 
whatever harm might come, for the sky was 
already growing dark, and the air was filled with 
the victorious enemies. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 13 


The king of the dragons came straight to the 
two children. 

“Hal” he breathed, “ here are the prince and 
princess. From now on they shall serve me. 
When they are grown — ha!” 

He never told what terrible thing he was plan- 
ning for them when they were grown, for Prince 
Hal, with both arms around his little sister, 
bravely faced the monster. 

“You shall not have my sister for your ser- 
vant, whatever you want of me,” he declared. 

The dragon’s eyes grew fiery. 

‘* S-s-s-so,” he hissed slowly, for fear was be- 
ginning to creep into his heart. He could not 
bear to see even the slightest signs of love, for 
love always upset his plans. He himself under- 
stood nothing but hate, but he did know that 
strong love is more powerful than hate, and he 
did not propose to have these two chits of chil- 
dren get the better of him. 

“You shall both serve me,” he roared, ‘‘ but 
you shall not serve me together.” 

He was determined to separate them, thinking 
that would cure their love. With an angry ges- 
ture he tore them apart, and breathed a fiery 
breath over the land. At once a high crag with 
a castle on its height rose into the air, and Gwen- 
dolin was snatched away and swiftly carried up 
the steep wall of rock. Prince Hal, seeing to his 
horror that she was straightway imprisoned in 
the enchanted castle, started to climb the crag 
after her. 
him, before he could protest, and carried him far 
away to the north. Another steep, rocky for- 
mation suddenly rose from the midst of a desert, 
and into the castle at its summit the young prince 
was thrust with even less ceremony than was used 
with Gwendolin. 

“Now,” bellowed the dragon, satisfied that he 
had separated the loving children, ‘ you shall 
serve me as I command. Half of the time you 
shall wait upon my desires, the other half that 
precious sister of yours. So! Fetch a brush and 
a pail of oil and scrub my scales.” 

Prince Hal’s hands trembled, not with fright, 
but with anger, as he went about his work. The 
thought of the dainty princess serving this mon- 
ster in such a way made him so indignant that he 
longed to hurt the dragon, and make him cry out 
in sorrow over his eyil acts. It was useless, how- 
ever, for a boy to try to hurt the huge beast. 

A fierce tenderness for his little helpless sister 


But the dragon king returned, seized’ 


sprang up in his breast, which was the last thing 
the dragon desired. He had hoped to crush out 
the children’s love by separating them. Instead 
it grew by leaps and bounds, and if the dragon 
had only known, he would have raged in despair. 

Year after year went by. Never for one mo- 
ment did Hal forget Gwendolin, and though he 
knew not how she fared, or if she still remembered 
and loved him, he loved her the harder as time 
went on. He longed for wisdom and strength to 
help him break the spell of the wicked dragon. 
He longed for news of his sister Gwendolin. 

Now round about him all this time were any 
number of clues which, if he could have under- 
stood them, would have led to the fulfillment of 
all his desires. 

The walls of the castle, for instance, were 
decorated with designs in black. To the boy 
they were only black marks, having no meaning 
at all. : 

Every spring the swallows nested in the castle 
eaves. They chattered incessantly when they 
first came, and especially in the fall before leaving 
for the south. They would then become more 
and more friendly, even flying in at the windows 
and perching on Hal’s shoulders, chattering in his 
ear. But though he loved the little creatures, it 
neyer occurred to him that their chattering was 
more than meaningless bird sounds. 

High up on the rocks above the tallest towers 
of the castle was an eagle’s nest. For years Hal 
had watched the mother eagle teaching her chil- 
dren to fly. He had felt sorry for the young as 
they fell from the great height, fluttering and help- 
less, trying their wings but not daring to depend 
upon them. He knew the mother bird had pushed 
them out of the nest, for they would never teach 
themselves. He had watched them fall, and then 
seen the big eagle swoop down and bear them up 
again on her back. But to him the cries of the 
birds were for each other, and had nothing to do 
with him. | 

Far, far below him on-the desert little moving 
specks appeared now and then. Further than 
wondering about them he did not think that he 
could ever see them nearer. They were camels, 
and if he had known how to use the books in the 
castle, he could have read how these great beasts 
were used as “ ships of the desert.” 

The patter of the rain on the window was but 
the patter of the rain, and the howling of the 
wind only a dreary wail to Prince Hal. 


14 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


But when he was twelve years old something 
happened. All the night before the prince had 
worked, waiting upon the dragon. It had been 
harder even than usual to please him, for he had 
come back from a battle in which he had been 
defeated. 

The dragon was now in a deep sleep, snoring 
loudly, and Hal wearily threw himself on a bench 
to rest his tired muscles. 

Suddenly, with no warning whatever, the room 
grew light. Hal sat up blinking his eyes. Who 
was that standing in the middle of the room, 
covered with a long black cloak? So surprised 
was he at first, at the thought of any one’s finding 
the castle, that instead of asking who it was, he 
stammered, “‘ Why, how — how did you get here? ”’ 

The visitor chuckled. 

‘Ts that all you have to ask?”’ she cackled in 
a high voice. 

Hal suddenly remembered the manners which 
his mother taught him long ago. He stood up 
and pointed to a chair. 7 

‘“Won’t you sit down?” said he, and then, 
“Td like very much to know who you are.” 

‘Well, I wondered whether you’d be curious 
enough to ask,” said the stranger. ‘It isn’t as 
if you’d ever seen me before to know me. I'd 
know you anywhere, though. You look exactly 
the same, only you’re bigger.” 

“Why, where did you ever see me?” 

“At your christening,” came the answer 
promptly. “I’m your fairy godmother. ‘I prom- 
ised I’d come around once in a dozen years and 
see that you had what you needed.” 

“Oh! ”cried Hal, seeing hope ahead. 
you get me out of this place? ”’ 

“No,” said his fairy godmother, “I certainly 
can’t. But I can help you to get yourself out. 
It’s surprising to me how little you’ve learned all 
this time. Why don’t you use your eyes and 
ears? ”’ 

“T thought I did,” said Hal, surprised. 

“Then why don’t you take the advice printed 
all around you and shouting to you in the air?” 
She pointed first to the black designs on the wall, 
and then to the window. 

“* Advice?’ repeated Hal, puzzled. The de- 
signs were merely black marks to him still. 

“What you need, my young prince,” said his 
fairy godmother, “is the seeing eye, and the 
understanding ear.’’ She touched his eyes and 
ears with her wand, said, “I'll come back in 


“ Can 


another dozen years and see how you’ve used my 
gifts,” and disappeared. 

Hal stood as she had left him, gazing into the 
space where she had been, trying to comprehend 
her words. He touched his eyes and ears, and 
puckered his forehead. It was very strange. 
Had he dreamed it all? 

He raised his eyes to the wall. What he saw 
there made him start. There before him, as 
plain as day, were words, words which he could 
read, and which meant something! Where had 
they come from? Why hadn’t he seen them 
before? 

Suddenly he realized that these words were 
made up of the meaningless black marks which 
he had been seeing for years; until his eyes were 
touched they had merely been a strange design. 
Now he could read them, and understand what 
they meant. This is what he read: 


Love will find a way 
To scale the loftiest wall, 

To cross the world and back again, 
For love will conquer all. 


For him that loves, no fears, 
No doubts can e’er appal; 

No trial is too hard or long, 
For love will conquer all. 


Who loves will stand his ground 
While all around him fall; 

His right arm holds the strength of ten, 
For love will conquer all. 


Prince Hal held up his head and new light came 
into his eyes. Those words were meant for him! 
They meant his great love for his little sister. He 
read them over and over until he knew them by 
heart. 

How should he find his sister? How could he 
even know that she was still alive? 

“‘ Twitter, twilter,’ chattered the swallows at 
the window. But to Hal’s amazement the sounds 
which he had heard over and over again were not 
merely chatter. They were words! And all 
these years he had been deaf to them! He opened 
the window wider. 

‘‘Your sister, your sister,” the birds were 
calling. 

“Yes, yes, said Hal breathlessly, “my sis- 
ter —”’ 

“She waits your coming in her castle in the 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 15 


south,” said one. ‘‘ Our winter home is under 
her roof.’ All day long she sings, ‘When my 
princely brother comes.’ ” 

Hal could hardly believe his ears. 

“Why haven’t you told me before? ” he asked 
impatiently. 

“We bring you messages every year,” they 
told him, “ but you would not listen before.” 

“I did not understand,” he acknowledged 
sadly. ‘‘ My ears had not been touched. But 
tell me, how can I find my sister? ” 

A general rustle and sound of many voices 
followed. The wind, which before seemed only 
- to moan and wail, was now speaking to him. 
The rain-drops which began to fall were not say- 
ing pilter, patter, but, “ We'll help you, we'll help 
you.” The eagle swooped down with the cry, 
“T'll bear you down on my back.” 

It seemed to Prince Hal that the clamor would 
surely reach the dragon’s ears, but his snores were 
the loudest sounds of all, as he slept noisily on. 

Down swooped the eagle. Hal hesitated. 
Should he ever dare trust himself to her back? 
Her children did. But dared he jump, risking a 
fall on the rocks below? Once more he turned to 
the marks on the wall. 


For him that loves, no fears, 
No doubts can e’er appal; 

No trial is too hard or long, 
For love will conquer all. 


He waited until the eagle swooped below him 
the third time, then, without hesitating a moment, 
jumped from the window and landed on her back. 

Down, down they-went, until they reached the 
desert far below. As Hal stepped to the ground, 
the eagle took fright and rose again at once; but 
as the boy turned he saw some camels coming 
across the sands. 

“Will you take me south across the desert? ” 
asked the prince when the largest one came near. 

The camel took him on her back and as Hal 
clung to her furry mane she swung across the 
desert as swift as the wind. She let him off at 
the shore of a lake. 

“T told you I would help,” said the water. 

“And I, too,” said the wind. ‘‘ Get into the 
boat and I will blow you across.” For there was 
a boat with a white sail and for miles and miles 
Hal sailed. From the farther shore he thought 
he could see, a great way off, what looked like a 
tall castle-like rock rising into the air. 


““Gwendolin!”’ he cried, and ran toward it. 
Exhausted at last, and weak from hunger, he fell, 
and did not move until he heard the twitter of 
birds above him. 

“ Tell me,” he called to them, ‘‘ how far away 
is Gwendolin’s castle which I see in the distance? ” 

“That is only a mirage,” said the birds. 
“ Gwendolin’s castle where she awaits her princely 
brother lies far to the south yet. Can you walk 
farther? ” 

“ Across the world and back again! ” he called. 
With the words he felt strength returning, and 
he rose. On and on he walked, urging himself 
forward with the words: 


“No trial is too hard or long, 
For love will conquer all.”’ 


The more he thought of Gwendolin the more 
determined he was to rescue her. 

At last he could really see the castle. The sides 
for the first hundred feet were rough and rocky. 
After that they were as smooth as glass, without a 
single crevice for a foothold. 

He stood at the bottom looking up. He was 
weak, and not very old, but he remembered, 


“ Love will find a way 
To scale the loftiest wall.’ 


‘“Gwendolin! Gwendolin!”’ he called. “ It’s 
Hal!” 

Far above ee a child’s face appeared at a 
window. 

“Hal!” cried the little princess. 
climb as far as my rope will reach! ” 

Hal began to climb. Up and up he went until 
at last he reached the smooth part. There at his 
head dangled a rope. Gwendolin had been mak- 
ing it for years, spinning flax into strands; weav- 
ing strands into cloth which the dragon had 
thought was for clothes for herself; braiding strips 
of cloth into a rope which grew so long year by 
year that Gwendolin lived in terror lest he should 
find the hiding place of the great ball. 

Hal seized the end, and slowly pulled himself 
up by it. In at the window at last Gwendolin 
helped him and clung to him as if she would 
never let him go. 

A hot breath and a roar of rage warned them 
of the dragon’s approach. 

“The dragon!” gasped Gwendolin. 
don’t let him take you away!” 

“Who loves!” began Hal, with his arms close 


“Oh, try to 


‘6 Oh, 


16 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


around his sister, and speaking in louder and 


’ Jouder tones. 


“‘ Who loves will stand his ground.” 
The dragon was near enough to hear, so Hal 
changed one word to frighten him, — 

‘‘ While DRAGONS round him fall!” 

The dragon king gave a despairing shriek, and 
a red flame of hate came from his mouth. 

‘¢ His right arm holds the strength of ten,”’ 
went on Hal, while the dragon breathed fire 
again. 

‘FOR LOVE WILL CONQUER ALL.” 

Hal waved his right fist out of the window in 
the dragon’s very face. The dragon gave one 
last snort, and then went up in a great flame. He 
had burned himself up in the blaze of hatred 
which flared as Hal reminded him of the power 
of love. 

At that moment the castle and crag sank to 
the ground, and the children found themselves 
once more in their old palace garden. The spell 
was broken. 

The prince and princess, although still very 
young, were proclaimed rulers, and because of 
their experience they ruled wisely and well. 

Hal had printed in beautiful letters on the walls 
of the palace the words which had meant so much 
to him, and when it became known throughout 
the land that the motto of the realm was ‘‘ Love 
WILL CONQUER ALL,” not a dragon dared remain 
in the vicinity or was ever seen again. 

Gwendolin grew to be tall and beautiful, and 
married the prince of a neighboring kingdom. 
Hal was then made king over his father’s people 
and found a lovely princess to be his queen. On 
his twenty-fourth birthday his first child was 
christened, and his fairy godmother appeared as 
he hoped she would. 

“Well,” she observed, evidently much pleased 
with the way he had used her gifts, “can I do 
anything for you or your child? ”’ 

‘“ Dear godmother,” he replied, pointing to the 
motto on the wall, ‘‘ touch my child’s eyes and 
ears with your wand. The gifts of the seeing 
eye and the understanding ear are the greatest 
boon I can ask!” 

School A. Children wished the story 
repeated at once, but there was not time. 
School B. Children knew how alliga- 
tors looked, but weren’t sure about dragons. 

Both boys and girls liked story, but it was 

too long. 


Plans for Teachers 


(After the story play a lively game, have a 
march or calisthenics. Then let the children 
discuss the story freely, hoping they will be re- 
minded of the little boy in Sunday’s story who 
couldn’t read the “ black marks” any more than 
Prince Hal could.) 

What a pity that little boy had no fairy god- 
mother — or did he? 


School A. ‘He did, — Miss True!” 


(Hold up some Chinese or Hebrew writing to 
show just how meaningless such marks can be 
before we have learned how to understand them. 
It is for the children to discover the similarity 
between fairy godmothers and teachers. They 
could make up a conundrum, — why is a teacher 
like a fairy godmother?) 


““Wouldn’t the teachers be surprised 
if they knew we were thinking of them 
as fairy godmothers!” (Appreciative 
giggles.) 
(Discuss ways by which the class could surprise 
them with it. Follow the children’s suggestions. 
They might have a party for them and tell them.) 


School A. A suggestion which was at 
once seized upon was to give a party. 


Would you like to act a play or pantomine 
about a fairy godmother who worked magic and 
turned out to be the teacher? 

Would that be all the program? Perhaps you 
could make up a song to sing to the teachers at 
the entertainment — a song to tell how glad you 
are for the ways teachers “ open our eyes” and 
make plain to us what was hidden before. 

(Helping children to make their own songs — 
words and tunes —is the sort of thing the music 
supervisors in many schools are doing. Plan to 
enlist the services of one if possible, and invite her 
to the next weekday meeting. All of these plans 
will, of course, be kept a strict secret from the 
teachers.) 


School A. Children elected one mem- 
ber to ask the music supervisor to help us 
next Saturday. 


(Spend the rest of the session making up the 
play suggested above, or drawing from the chil- 
dren ideas to help the leader write up a little 
dramatization before next week. 

Before leaving have a simple prayer thanking 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 17 


God for the people who open our eyes so that we 
can read and understand.) 


Report of School A 
Telling Tales 

No time to make up a play today, but Elinor 
suggested that each teacher (there were four 
represented) be drawn into the play as a fairy 
godmother, but as a surprise to herself. The 
composition of the play was left trustfully to the 
leader. 

During the discussion Lawrence’s feet, under 
the table, interfered with Tina’s. Tina com- 
plained. Lawrence counter-complained, ‘‘ She 
stepped on my feet.” This came just after 
Stuart had started to “ tell on” Tommy Firth, 
who, it seemed, had thrown stones at a Chinaman. 
Tommy not present. 

Leaver: Just a minute. We said we’d like to 
go to school to Jesus. Do you know what he 
said to the people who wanted to “tell on” 
others? 

(Children perfectly attentive and equally im- 


pressed through story of men accusing a woman 
of wrong and the answer, ‘‘ Whoever is without 
sin among you, let him cast the first stone.” 
This was followed up later by the story in the 
Fourth Sunday program, and by numerous refer- 
ences to it throughout the year, until, ‘‘ Whoever 
isn’t to blame himself —”’’ became a byword. 
The leader needed only to start it. ‘‘ Throw the 
first stone” always followed, usually from the 
guilty child himself. The picture and verse 
formed two of the first pages in their “ illumi- 
nated Bibles.” (See Nineteenth Weekday.) 


Report of School B 

Children took readily to the idea of a play and 
song for the teachers. Their first attempt at a 
song: 

“We have teachers young and old, 
We always do as we are told.” 

This last, however, was flatly contradicted by 
nearly all. 

Children printed ‘‘ Love Conquers All ”’ in their 
note-books and illustrated the story. 


THIRD SUNDAY 
October 


(In the pre-session period practise one or two 
of the songs chosen for last Sunday’s worship 
period, helping the children to feel that we must 
learn our songs well before we use them in “ sing- 
ing to God.’’) 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


Quiet Music. 
Prayer-song. (No. 1 or 2 in Songs for Little 
People.) 


INTRODUCTION TO Praise Sone. ‘‘I was glad 
when they said unto me, Let us go into the house 
of the Lord.” 

(Leader continues, if the rest of the department 
is using International Graded Lessons), — The 
children of the second grade have learned a good 
way to enter God’s house. A singer long ago 
told us. (Second-year children may join in last 
Sunday’s memory verse.) ‘“‘ Enter into his gates 
with thanksgiving, and into his courts with 
praise.” 

Praise Song. 
Sunday.) 

Offering Service. (Prayer, song, or both.) 


Chords. (March to classes.) 


(Chosen for worship period last 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Recalling the Old. (Review stories of God as 
a Creator. Children tell them. Recall and re- 
peat Genesis 1:1. The class talks about God as 
a Creator. Children name God’s creations which 
they see about them, which the leader notes on 
the board. They name fruits, vegetables, min- 
erals. Perhaps one child has traveled to a differ- 
ent part of the country. Let him tell of different 
fruits and vegetables to be found there. What 
fruits does an Italian child know? How do we 
happen to have food which grows in other parts 
of the world? Refer especially to fruits, native 
to other countries, which travelers have found de- 
sirable and brought here. This all leads up to 
the idea that God wants us to know about his 
world in order that we may use it.) 


School A. Children’s talk about Satur- 
day’s session took so much time that the 


18 


suggestions as given were not used. The 
continuous miracle of creation, however, 
held them for a few moments as one child 
told how pictures in a newspaper had shown 
how the recent earthquake had changed 
Japan’s coastline (‘‘ part of it’s gone away 
and now there’s land where there wasn’t 
any before. And new islands, too! ’’) All 
the children marvelled at the new thought 
that the formation of the earth is con- 
stantly changing. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


Conversation. (The leader speaks of the 
pleasure of meeting together in God’s house, and 
telling each other about things that are happening 
to us, thinking about God, our Father, without 
whom we should not even be here. For “ in the 
beginning,” — first-year class joins in memory 
verse, — ‘God created the heavens and the 
earth.” The third grade shares with the depart- 
ment what they have been talking about, naming 
some of the many things God has created. 

(The leader reminds the children of the many 
parts of God’s world which we have never seen, 
but which we know about.) How do we know 
about them? (Books.) How do we know how 
to read books? (Teachers.) Why can’t our 
mothers and fathers teach us all we need to know? 
(Too busy. May not know facts themselves and 
have not time to look them up.) 

For years parents have been bringing their 
boys and girls to teachers who could tell their 
children what they could not teach them them- 
selves. 

Once word went around the countryside that 
there was a famous teacher traveling from place 
to place. He taught surprising things in a sur- 
prising way. People would ask him questions 
about how to live, and the great Teacher would 
answer by telling a story. And the people who 
listened to his stories understood what he meant 
and knew what to do. Mothers brought their 
children to him. (Show picture of Jesus with the 
children.) We know that he loved them and 
blessed them, but he told them stories, too. The 
stories taught them how to be good and brave 


| 
. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 19 


and helpful. Did you ever know a mother who 
didn’t want her children to learn how to be good 
and brave and helpful? Just think how those 
mothers who heard that Jesus was coming must 
have wanted their children to have a chance to 
see him! Suppose a mother had a child who was 
unkind to his neighbors, and wanted him to learn 
how to treat them. Can you think of a story 
Jesus might tell? (The Good Samaritan.) 

(The leader enlists the children’s cooperation 
by partly dramatizing the scenes. She pretends 
she is one mother after another bringing her child 
to Jesus to help her solve her problems. If a 
picture of Jesus is near, it may make the scene 
more real. For instance:) 

“Great Teacher, my child is cowardly. Will 
you teach him how to be brave?” (The leader 
then asks the children for his possible answers. 
What stories could he have told to the cowardly 
child to make him want to be brave? They may 
respond with ‘‘ David and Goliath,” or “ Daniel 
in the Lion’s Den.” Jesus knew these stories. 
He probably told them many times. He had 
learned them as a boy. Pictures will remind the 
children of these stories.) 


Moruer: Great Teacher, how can I help my 
children to stop quarreling? (Abraham and Lot.) 


Mortuer: Esther is timid, great Teacher. I 
cannot leave her alone in the dark. How can 
she know she is safe? (Jacob’s Night under the 
Stars.) 


Mortuer: My son has been hurt by another lad. 
He thinks it is brave and right to pay him back. 
Is there any better way that you can tell him, 
great Teacher? (David Sparing Saul.) 


School A. This illustration was used 
second, and the story, demanded by the 
children, took up the rest of the period. 
They listened breathlessly, for it was a 
new story. 

The whole department so thoroughly 
enjoyed this method of dramatizing that 
the children asked if they couldn’t do it 
every Sunday. 


Moruer: My little son is not kind to the 
animals. Great Teacher, show him how to treat 
them. (The Good Shepherd. David Saving 
His Sheep.) 

(Other answers may take the form of verses 
which Jesus learned as a boy in his synagogue 
school or later: ‘‘ Speak ye every man the truth 
with his neighbor”; ‘‘ Thou shalt love thy 
neighbor as thyself.’’) 


** T Think When I Read,” (first stanza). 


Prayer. (Two stanzas of ‘“ Jesus, Friend of 
Little Children,” sung by leader.) 

(If the song is not used the leader says:) 

Jesus taught people that everything good came 
from his Father and ours, and showed them how 
to thank him. (Ask for suggestions for a prayer 
of thanks for his gifts. They will range all the 
way from sun, rain and flowers, to parents, 
schools and teachers. Make the prayer include 
all they have mentioned.) 


Song. 


JoHN (as we were passing to classes 
after the Great Teacher dramatization): 
Wish he was right here and could tell us 
those stories! 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


(Follow the thought of both the worship period 
and the first class period; i.e., that God wants 
us to know about his world and to use it; to 
know his wishes for his children and to follow 
them. If this is so, then we must know about 
this world, and learn what he wants. Tell 
“Reading and Writing and Getting Ready,” 
from The Rest of the Family, by Jeanette E. 
Perkins, also in The Pilgrim Elementary 
Teacher, February, 1923. Introduce this by a 
brief synopsis of the early chapters.) 


School A. “ Tell us another story!” 

(Léader felt that the main thought was 
crowded out. Second class period should 
have been used for further discussion 
rather than for the story.) 


THIRD WEEKDAY 
Composing Song and Party Plans 


The first part of this program is devoted to 
making a song about ‘‘ Our Teachers ” which can 
be used both in worship services and in the 
entertainment which the class is planning for 
their teachers. The children contribute their 
own suggestions for such a song of appreciation. 
The song should show how teachers open our 
eyes, and how thankful we are for them. Though 
the rhyming may not be first class, if it represents 
the children’s thought and efforts, it is worth 
while. A teacher of music will know how to 
help the children make a tune to fit the words. 
If making an original song seems impossible, the 
following poem may be used: 


A Song About Teachers 


God’s world is for his children. 
He made it very fair, 
With soft blue skies and deep blue seas, 
With blossoms, wind and bending trees, 
And clouds and crystal air, 
’ And music, love and beauty. 
But children are too small, 
At first, to see its meaning well, 
To understand it all. 
They are as dear, blind children 
Who cannot walk aright, 
But wait till friendly helpers come 
To make the darkness bright. 


God sends those friendly helpers, 
Our teachers wise and dear. 

Day after day at school, they make 
The hard things easy for our sake, 
The dark things very clear. 

They show us marks called letters, 
Which we can change to words 
That mean all kinds of loveliness, 
Like people, flowers and birds. 

We put those marks together 

And make a prayer today, 

An earnest prayer for teachers dear — 
“ God bless them all!” we say. 


— Nancy Byrd Turner. 


Spend the rest of the time composing or re- 
hearsing the pantomime or play. 


Report of Schools A and B on Composing 
Songs 

School A. Children made two tunes and 
learned to sing them. Making up the verses for 
“When We Were Little Children” was a slow 
process. Music supervisor showed children how 
to choose a word for the end of the line for which 
there would be plenty of rhymes, and then to fit 
the rest of the words to the rhyming words. 
Once the words were accomplished and put on the 
blackboard, the tune came more easily. At her 
suggestion that all think of a tune for the first 
line, the children thought and hummed until she 
heard a promising one, and asked the child to 
sing it. Different children contributed the final 
tune for different lines, but it came out a com- 
plete little song. The children beamed when it 
was done. “It’s our song,’ “‘ We made it our- 
selves,” ‘‘ I love it,’’ were the comments. 

To the verse, ‘‘Our Teachers Are like Fairies,” 
which was on another board, Anne made up a 
tune entirely by herself, I'ne by line, taking not 
five minutes for the process. (See pages 22, 23.) 

The children begged the music supervisor to 
come to church school tomorrow and help them 
teach the song to the rest of the department. 

The composing of these songs was not exactly 
“‘whole-hearted activity.” Most of the boys 
were frankly bored. The girls loved it. 

School B. The children composed this song 
to be sung to the tune of ‘‘ Words of God,” an 
English song printed in The Pilgrim Elemen- 
tary Teacher, September, 1923. 


O teachers dear, you help us so 

To use our eyes in all we do, 

To see the beauty all around. 

You are our helpers dear. 

We tell you now how glad we are 

That we may come and work with you; 
We'll do the best that we know how, 
For we are so thankful. 


Report of School A 
Planning the Party 
We decided to invite mothers, third-grade 
teachers, second-grade teachers, the music super- 
visor. 
We also decided on a play based on the very 
sketchy synopsis the leader had brought, the 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 21 


speeches not to be memorized, but each child to 
make up his own. 

Before the play the story, “ The Fairy God- 
mother’s Gifts,’ would show how the idea of the 
play started. John impulsively volunteered to 
tell the story, but later resigned in favor of the 
leader, who “‘ knew it already, and wouldn’t have 
to learn it.” 

After the play would come the song, “ Our 
Teachers Are Like Fairies,” and somebody could 
explain that Anne made up the tune. Then they 
would sing their very own song, “ When We 
Were Little Children,’ have refreshments and 
give the teachers some presents they had made. 

The most important question of the day was 
about costumes. Some one suggested that this 
should be a Hallowe’en party. Everybody could 
bring Jack-o’-lanterns for decorations, and wear 
costumes. If there was going to be a play, they 
ought to wear costumes anyway. 

Leaver: Where will you get the costumes? 

CHILDREN: We have them from other plays. 

Leaver: What kind are they? 

Mine’s a Pilgrim child. 
Mine’s an elf costume. 
Mine’s a Little Miss Muffet. 
I have a flower costume. 

I have a Little Boy Blue suit. 

LeApvER: They’re all different, aren’t they? 
What would the audience think if you all came 
on the stage with different costumes? They 
wouldn’t know what kind of people you were. 

Cuitp: They’d think we lived in another 
country where they wear clothes different from 
ours. 

LEADER: But what country would have so 
many different kinds of costumes? 

CuiLp (after much pondering): Well, isn’t there 
some place that nobody knows anything about 


CHILDREN: 


so nobody knows what they do wear? Then we 
could pretend we were from there. 

Leader laughingly replied that they might 
come from Mars, which, after learning what Mars 
was, they decided to do. This gave them a per- 
fectly legitimate reason for dressing as fantasti- 
cally as they liked. 

In the play there must be wands. Two boys 
knew how to make them with gold stars on top. 
We decided to make them next week. 


Getting Cooperation 

John and Florrie preferred to leave us and play 
in the larger church-school room. Leader made 
the game more exciting so the other children 
would forget them, but the runaways rang a bell. 
All were on the point of following the truants. 

LEADER: Just a minute, children. John and 
Florrie are trying to have some fun alone. The 
only way it will be fun for them will be for us to 
show we miss them, stop our game, hunt them up 
and tease them to come back. Do we want 
them to have fun that way, or by coming into 
the game? 

CHILDREN: Playing with us. 
attention to them. 

We made the game more exciting. Truants, 
getting no attention, wandered in, and tried to 
join. 

LAWRENCE: You don’t know how to play be- 
cause you weren’t here when we learned how! 

Truants got chairs and joined circle a little 
sheepishly. Leader took the opportunity to ex- 
plain that the church belonged to many people 
who paid for its being kept in repair, heated and 
lighted. One room was heated especially for us 
on Saturdays. The trustees had granted us per- 
mission to use that one room. There was no 
more going into the chapel. 


Don’t pay any 


22 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


WHEN WE WERE LITTLE CHILDREN 


(Words and tune composed by School A, harmonized by Music Supervisor.) 


—— q 
1. When we were lit - tle chil . dren We had 
2. When we grew up our teach - ers Had 


eyes _ but could minds were not grown 
won-der - ful gifts to RIVE? 5 ib tectes het s For knowledge and un ~-_ der - 


up e - nough To know what we should need. . Peg 
Can teach us how to Vest. aot 5 eee 7 


Ml 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 23 


OUR TEACHERS ARE LIKE FAIRIES 


(Air composed by Anne, School A, harmonized by Music Supervisor) 


1. Our teach - ers are like fair - ies, They 
2: Learn - ing is like mag - ic. The 


touch oureye or ear; Andgive a sud-den mean - ing To all we see and hear. 
teach-er waves her wand, And pres - ent-ly oureyes andmindsCansee and un- der - stand. 


FOURTH SUNDAY 
October 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


Quiet Music. ‘“ This Is God's House.” 

Leader’s Talk. Long ago, in the city of 
Jerusalem, men had built a beautiful house for 
God. It was larger than the one we come to 
every Sunday. It covered a great deal of ground. 
Around it were open spaces called courts, and 
these courts were inclosed by walls. ‘There were 
gates in the walls on every side. The people 
loved to visit God’s house and sing to him and 
thank him for all his gifts. “ When you come 
into God’s house,” they said, “enter into his 
gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with 
praise.” Wherever men have built houses to 
God, the people enter to sing praises and to thank 
him for every good and every perfect gift which 
our Father sends us. 


Praise Songs and Prayer. (The children 
choose praise song or songs practised the day 
before. They sing a prayer song or the leader 
offers prayer, thanking God for this day.) 

“This is the day which the Lord hath made; 

We will rejoice and be glad in it.” 


School A. A prayer was used, made 
up of children’s suggestions, ending with 
the song refrain, “‘ Father, we thank thee.” 


Offering. Since my heavenly Father gives me 
everything, 
Lovingly and gladly now my gifts I bring. 
— Songs for Little People. 
(Leader speaks of the way in which the offering 
is the gift of God.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Response to Old Stories. (From pictures on 
the screen children select and talk about those 
which suggest different ways of “ going to school,” 
such as the fledgling learning to fly, the kitten 
toying with a spool, a little child taking its first 
steps, the disciples with the Master Teacher.) 

Alternative. (Reviewing the thought of going 
to school as a universal experience, the children 
play Anagrams. Leader asks, “ Who goes to 
school?” Each child selects, from the pile in 
the center, letters which spell his answer. They 
may whisper their selection to the leader, who 


24 


makes a list, that there need be no duplicates. 
Each child passes his letters to child on his left, 
who must guess from the letters what his neigh- 
bor had in mind.) 


School A. Children were enthusiastic 
about the game,— were proud of their 
ability to spell. 

(Comment during the game about playing with 
these “ black marks,’ and how stupid we should 
have felt if we had never learned to read them.) 
SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 

Worship and Fellowship 


Conversation. Last Sunday we spoke of how 
in the beginning God created the heavens and 
the earth; of his many gifts in different parts of 
the earth. How did we know about them? 
(Through books.) How did we know how to read 
the books? (From schools and teachers.) 


School B. The children suggested that 
they themselves were teachers for their 
smaller brothers and sisters, and resolved to 
be good teachers. This led to the “ hero 
worship” idea, — they being heroes to the 
little ones, — and brought out the respon- 
sibility involved. 


In the third-year class we have been thinking 
how queer letters and figures look before we can 
read them. It was just a little while ago that 
some of you first-year children didn’t know what 
they meant, wasn’t it? Writing was just like so 
many black marks on the page, or white marks 
on the blackboard. How are you learning what 
they mean? (Through teachers.) It is just as 
if our teachers opened our eyes all over again 
and made us see, isn’t it? So the third-grade 
children felt very thankful that our heavenly 
Father made teachers to tell us all about his 
world and show us how to use it. And yesterday 
they made a little song about them. They want 
to sing it to you now. See if you think it is true 
and would like to sing it too. 

School A. Children sang ““ When We 
Were Little Children ” over and over, be- 
cause they loved it and the others wanted 
to learn it. The music supervisor was 
present to play. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 25 


(If more time is required for a fuller interpreta- 
tion and appreciation of the song which the child- 
ren have made the day before, or, if no original 
song was made, of the poem given in the last 
weekday program, use the entire period. 

If the “ appreciation lesson ’’ on the song takes 
only a short time, however, continue the thought 
of last Sunday’s second departmental period — 
of mothers bringing their children to Jesus, the 
great Teacher, for advice and help. Read the 
following poem, and possibly use the simple 
dramatization suggested last week.) 


The First Children’s Day! 


"Twas long ago and far away 
That to a little town 

The Master came, one summer day, 
And weary, sat him down. 

As sunlight faded in the west, 

He sat him down a while to rest. 


(Refrain) 
Oh, long ago and far away, 
But year by year 
We hold it dear, 
That first most lovely Children’s Day! 


The mothers whispered each to each: 
“His words are wise and true; 
Oh, what if he would bless and teach 
Our little children, too! ” 
And so, before the day grew dim, 
They brought the children unto him. 


He looked into their wondering eyes, 
They looked into his own; 
He gathered up the little ones 
Who could not stand alone; 
And smiled upon that wistful band, 
The older children hand in hand. 


He spoke, and they were unafraid, 
.He told them tenderly 

Old stories of another time, 
Old tales of years gone by; 

Of girls and boys of other days, 

Their gentle hearts, their kindly ways. 


He told of little Samuel’s quick 
Obedience to God’s call, 
Of Isaac’s calm and trusting faith, 
Young Joseph’s love for all; 
1From Song and Play for Children, Danielson and Conant. 


Of Daniel’s strong, courageous part, 
And little Miriam’s faithful heart. 


He spoke of budding springtime trees; 
Of flowers in the grass; 

Of April lambs and building birds, 
And winds that blow and pass. 

The mothers, watching in their place, 

Saw light upon each little face. 


The children very closely pressed 
And listened, rapt and still. 

The youngest baby of them all 
Lay well content, until 

As dusky evening shadows crept, 

Its lashes lowered, and it slept. 


He blessed them then, and sent them home, 
And they were truly blest, 

For as the weeks went by, each child 
Was gentler to the rest, 

More watchful of another’s need, 

More true in word and kind in deed! 


(Refrain) 
O long ago and far away, 
But year by year 
We hold it dear, 
That first most lovely Children’s Day! 


— Nancy Byrd Turner. 


Song. “Jesus, Friend of Little Children.” 
(Songs for Little People), sung by leader. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


(Have ready to use these pictures: “ Jesus 
Teaching the Disciples to Pray,” International 
Graded Lessons, Primary Picture Set No. 3; 
“Christ Blessing Little Children,” ‘ Jesus 
Christ,’’ Beginners’ Picture Set No. 1.) 


Tue Story or GEorGE KiLInG 


George Kling was the only child in Happy 
Valley who was not glad to learn that Miss True 
was going to start a school. He did not like 
school. Before he had come to Happy Valley he 
had lived in the dirtiest part of a great city. He 
had no father, and his mother was very poor. 
George had to work to help buy milk and bread 
for his little sister. He worked nights and some 
days, so that when he went to school he was so 


26 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


sleepy that he seemed stupid. He had been put 
back grade by grade until he was with the small- 
est children. Boys and girls his own age made 
fun of him and called him stupid, and the teachers 
thought him lazy and stubborn. No one except 
his mother had ever been kind to him. 


When they moved to Happy Valley he hoped 
things would be different. But his clothes were 
so old and soiled and shabby that other children 
did not ask him to play with them. Once his 
mother brought home a coat somebody had given 
her to make over into clothes for the children. 
But George, although he was sensitive about his 
rags, was even more sensitive about his little 
sister, Lucy. She was a beautiful child, and 
George couldn’t bear to see her so shabbily 
dressed, and he had said, ‘‘ Make a dress for Lucy 
first, mother. She’s all rags, and besides, she'll 
feel the cold more.” So his mother had started 
a dress for Lucy. George didn’t care much. He 
did wish the other children would ask him to 
join in their games, but that very day two little 
girls had passed him with their noses in the air. 
‘See that ragged boy,” one had said. “I should 
think he’d be ashamed.” Nobody ever seemed to 
like him. 

He had heard that Happy Valley was to have a 
school, but he made up his mind not to go if he 
could help it. The children wouldn’t play with 
him and he had never had a teacher yet who had 
understood him. He wondered why they all 
thought him stupid and bad. He didn’t mean to 
be. He was thinking these things when a young 
woman came into his yard. 

‘“* How do you do? ”’ she said. 
George Kling? ”’ 

“Yes,” he answered, eyeing her suspiciously. 
What did she want of him? 

“T’m glad to know you, George,” she said. 
“My, how straight you are! You remind me of 
another George who was a soldier. Did you ever 
hear of George Washington? ”’ 

George was straight, but nobody had ever 
noticed it before. He made his backbone even 
stiffer now, and felt very proud to be told he was 
like a soldier, though he had never heard of George 
Washington. 

‘*T’m Miss True,” the stranger went on. 
your mother in, George? ”’ 

George ran up the steps and opened the door. 
Little Lucy stood in the middle of the floor. 


“Ts your name 


“ce Is 


Lucy’s hair was like spun gold and she was very 
pretty. 

“Oh, you darling child!” cried Miss True, 
holding out her arms, and Lucy ran into them, 
seeming to know that Miss True was her friend. 

Mrs. Kling came in from the next room. 

‘“‘What nice children you have, Mrs. Kling!” 
said the caller, holding out her hand. ‘I’m Miss 
True, and I’ve come to ask if George can’t come 
to my school.” 

She put her hand over his shoulder and George 
straightened up again. He resolved always to 
act like a soldier for Miss True. Now for the 
first time in his life he wanted to go to school. 
He looked down at his ragged clothes doubtfully. 
His mother saw the look. 

‘“‘ He wouldn’t let me make him a new suit until 
Lucy had a new dress,” she hastened to explain. 

Miss True’s eyes shone. “How fine and 
generous of you, George!’ she said, and George 
felt as if she had given him a present. Nobody 
had ever called him fine and generous before. He 
decided that he would always be fine and generous 
for Miss True. Then she said something which 
pleased him more than ever. He was very proud 
of little Lucy. He thought she was probably the 
loveliest little girl in the world. 


Exrnor: “Just like Hal and his little sister.” 


No one ever said nice enough things about her 
to suit him. 

Now Miss True was saying, ‘‘I don’t wonder 
you want her to have new clothes first; there 
aren’t many boys who have such a beautiful little 
sister.” 

Wouldn’t you have felt proud? He immedi- 
ately became Miss True’s faithful friend, and he 
decided then and there not only to go to her 
school, but to behave in such a way that she 
should always think him fine and generous and 
like a soldier. 

The next morning, with face and hands as 
clean as soap and water could make them, with a 
back as straight as ever George Washington’s 
was, and with clothes patched as neatly as his 
mother’s hands could do it, George walked down 
the street toward Miss True’s school. 

You will remember that there was no school- 
house yet built in Happy Valley, so the school 
was in the church. George paid no attention to 
the children gathering on the lawn. He was 
looking for Miss True. He wanted her to see 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 27 


how straight he was and he felt like being fine and 
generous all day long. 

Miss True was nowhere to be seen. She was 
inside getting her room ready. George marched 
confidently up the steps, but suddenly stopped. 

“ Oh, look!” cried one sharp-voiced little girl, 
“there’s that ragged boy that lives down on 
Spring Street.” And another answered, “‘ What’s 
he doing here? He can’t come to our school.” 

All the light went out of George’s eyes. There 
it was again — the children were making fun of 
him. His shoulders slumped, and he didn’t look 
quite as much like a soldier as he had a moment 
before. 

Then one of the boys shouted, “ Say, he looks 
something like Raggedy Andy!” and at once the 
others took it up. 

“ Raggedy Andy, Raggedy Andy!” they jeered 
in sing-song voices, pointing their fingers at him. 

“ Don’t you call me Raggedy Andy,” George 
hurled back at them. ‘‘ My mother mended me 
all up and I’m not any raggeder’n you are.” 

“ Raggedy Andy, Raggedy Andy!” continued 
the jeering sing-song. 

George suddenly flung himself upon the boy 
who jeered loudest, knocked him down, pounded 
and pummeled him. Then he jumped at the boy 
nearest, doing the same to him. It was a dread- 
ful fight. Some of the others, not wanting to be 
out of it, picked up gravel and threw it in George’s 
face. Quick as a flash George began pelting them 
with handfuls of it. It was flying in all direc- 
tions, and then a pebble larger than the rest went 
flying through the air, and smash went a window 
in the church. 


School A. The leader had to stop here, 
as the composing of a refrain in second 
department period had encroached upon 
time. It proved a happy place to stop, 
with interest at the highest point. John 
was not present, but his friend Lawrence 
said importantly, “ I'll tell John the story 
so far, so he’ll be ready for the rest.” 


George had broken a church window! Can 
you imagine how he felt? He, who only a few 
moments before had felt so soldier-like and fine 
and generous! What would Miss True think of 
him now? She mustn’t know how he had lost 
his temper and fought and thrown stones. Would 
the others tell on him? He shouldn’t let them. 

But the children were frightened. A church 


window had been broken. Miss True mustn’t 
think they did it. They were quite ready to 
place all the blame on the strange ragged boy. 

Miss True came to the door. 

“That boy,” began a chorus of children, but 
got no further, for “that boy ” was raising his 
voice in a mighty howl, so loud that he drowned 
out the others. He did not intend to let those 
children tell on him. Miss True put her hands 
over her ears. 

“That boy broke —” the others tried again, 
but wild shrieks and unearthly yells drowned 
them out once more. George wasn’t acting much 
like a soldier. There was nothing fine and 
generous in what he was doing now, and he 
knew it. But how could he bear to have 
Miss True, the only person in the world 
who had ever thought him fine, know how 
bad he had been? 

Miss True had taken her hands away from her 
ears and put her fingers to her lips. 

“Come in to school,” she said. ‘‘ Good morn- 
ing, George, I’m glad you came.” 

George looked gratefully up at her. He sud- 
denly didn’t care if she did know, only he wanted 
to tell her himself. She showed him his seat 
while the others went quietly to theirs. He looked 
anxiously at her. Was she going to let them tell 
on him? 

I told you the school was in the church. On the 
walls were three pictures. You remember how 
Freddie and Alice and Billy and the others had 
chosen them to be on the walls the whole year. 

Miss True was pointing to them now. ‘“‘ Some 
of you chose those pictures,’ she said. ‘ We 
were talking about how everybody in the world 
has to go to school, or in some way learn to live. 
You looked at the pictures of Jesus healing people, 
helping people, feeding people. You saw him 
teaching his special pupils.” (Show.) ‘ You 
saw him a friend of little children.” (Show.) 
“You said you would like to have him for a 
teacher. You said you wished you could go to 
school to Jesus. You can go to school to Jesus. 
Any one can. What he taught is all in this 
book.” (Show Bible.) ‘‘ His special pupils wrote 
it down for us. So we know what he would say 
if we wanted him to teach us about anything. 

“There was once a woman who had done 
wrong. Some men found out about it and said 
among themselves, ‘‘ Let’s take her to Jesus the 
Teacher, and tell him how bad she is.” So they 


28 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


took her roughly by the arms and started out to 
find Jesus.” . 

George was listening with all his might. He 
had never heard of Jesus, but he liked the pictures 
on the wall and he felt, oh, so sorry for the poor 
woman! He thought he knew just how she felt. 
“Oh,” he said to himself, ‘‘I hope Jesus won’t 
let them tell on her!” What was Miss True 
saying? 

‘““* Teacher,’ they said when they reached him, 
‘look at this wicked woman. She has done 
wrong. Shall we stone her)’ ” 

How George disliked those men! Why did 
they have to tell on her? What would Jesus say? 

“« And Jesus said,’ went on Miss True, “ ‘ Who- 
ever has never done any wrong himself may throw 
the first stone.’ And one by one the men who 
were so anxious to blame the woman slunk away, 
ashamed. Not one of them could say he had 
never done wrong. And when they were gone 
Jesus looked at the woman and said, ‘I do not 
blame you either, but from now on do no more 
wrong.’’’ Then Miss True said, “ You said you 
wanted to go to school to him. Very well.” 

She hung on the wall a new picture. It was 
like this. (Show Head of Jesus.) And then she 
asked a question, just as we’ve been doing. 

‘“‘ Great Teacher,” she said, ‘‘ one of us, in a 
fit of temper, threw a stone and broke the church 
window. We think we ought to punish him. 
Shall we tell you who it is and how bad he is? ” 

Miss True looked at the picture and so did the 
children as if they were expecting an answer. 

“T think,” said Miss True, “ that he is inviting 
you to tell him what you all started to tell me 
when I went to the door. Whoever did not do 
any wrong himself may tell first.” 

Miss True waited. But not a single boy or 
girl answered. One boy started to, then he re- 
membered how he had called George names to 
make him angry. One girl almost -pointed her 
finger at George, and then she remembered how 
she had thrown the first handful of gravel at him. 

George stood up. The children looked a little 
frightened. Perhaps he was going to tell on them. 

‘** Please, Miss True,” he said, ‘‘ I want to tell.” 

The children grew more frightened. He surely 
was going to tell. Well, perhaps it served them 
right. After all, they had started things by 
making him angry in the first place. But they 
were treated to a surprise. 

**T broke the church window, Miss True,” said 


George. “I’m sorry. I got angry, and threw 
stones. I’m sorry. I was bad. I’m sorry. I 
guess — I guess” — his voice broke — “I guess 
I’m not very much like a soldier, after all.” 

He sat down. He was sure Miss True would 
never praise him again, but he had done what the 
picture and story of Jesus somehow made him 
want to do. 

The children listened amazed. He hadn't 
blamed them! He hadn’t even mentioned them! 

Miss True looked at George just as she had 
looked at him the day before when she had heard 
about Lucy’s dress. And she said the very same 
words. ‘‘That’s fine and generous of you, 
George! ” 

Nobody heard them but George himself, for 
Billy had suddenly jumped up. 

‘Tt wasn’t half as much his fault as it was ours, 
Miss True,” he said. ‘‘ We made him mad, and 
we threw things first, didn’t we?’ He looked 
around at the other children. 

‘“ Yes, yes,” came the answers from everywhere, 
and one boy said, ‘‘ I think we were mean. We 
shouldn’t have liked it if somebody had made fun 
of us.” 

‘“We were,” said another: ‘‘ but George isn’t 
mean. He’s been a good deal nicer than we were, 
even if —’’ she stopped. She was going to say 
‘even if he is ragged,’ but she didn’t want to 
hurt his feelings. 

I don’t need to tell you the rest. You can 
imagine how they treated George at recess. They 
even made him captain of their games. 

A few days after that George came to school in 
a beautiful new suit. He had new shoes and 
stockings, too, and a fine cap and overcoat. 


Tommy: His mother made it. FLORRIE: 
She couldn’t make shoes and stockings. 
Joun: No, sir, Miss True sent it to him. 
Everysopy: Yes, Miss True. JoHn: Who 
do you think it was, Miss Bradley? 
Leaver: I don’t know. It might have 
been Miss True, or it might have been the 
children who clubbed together and got it 
without telling him. JoxHN: Say, it might 
be, at that! Anoruer: I bet it was the 
children. ANoTHER: It would have been 
just like them to, after being so mean. 


He said they had come the day before in a big 
box. He didn’t know, and I don’t know who 
had sent them. But though the children were as 


== 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 29 


glad as he was about his new present, it made no 
difference now in their liking for him. When 
they played with him now it was not of his clothes 
they thought, but of a boy who had had a chance 
to pay them back by telling how horrid they had 
been, but who, instead, had only blamed himself. 

(After the story wait for comments. Should 
the children have liked George? Do they like 
“ tattle-tales”’? Do they think Jesus did? Do 
they still think they should have liked Jesus as 
their teacher? Tell what the Happy Valley chil- 
dren did. If there is not time for this, tell ‘‘ the 
secret’ in the review period next week.) 

After that affair Miss True’s school had a 
secret. Would you like to hear about it?. The 
more they knew Jesus as a teacher, the better 
they liked the idea of going to school to him. He 
was so fair and so kind, and always understood. 
They kept the pictures up on the wall to remind 
them. But it wasn’t always so easy. We know 
what’s right to do often, and don’t do it. That’s 
what happened in Happy Valley. But this was 
the secret. When some one did a particularly 
hard thing that was brave and kind or generous, 
and what Jesus would like, Miss True would say 
quietly to that child if she knew about it, “‘ You’ve 
been to school, haven’t you?’ By the way she 
said it the child would understand that she meant 
a particular school —not the one where they 
learned reading and writing and arithmetic. And 
he would feel as though that was the highest praise 
that could be given him. Very soon they were 
all trying to win it. They were thrilled when she 
would nod and smile and say, “ Going to school, 
Betty? ” or, ‘‘ I see you’ve been to school, John,” 
or, “ Let’s all go to school and see about that.” 
They even grew to say it among themselves. 
But they never finished the sentence. That was 
their secret. Nobody but Miss True and the 
children knew that when some one said, ‘“‘ Going 
to school,” with them it meant, “‘ Going to school 
to Jesus.” 

Notre ON REFERENCE TO FAMILIAR STORIES: 
The leader should be able to use stories over and 
over again as reminders when their message seems 
to have been forgotten. She will rarely retell 
them exactly as at first, as that would bring upon 
her the response from some insulted boy, ‘‘ Aw, 
I know that story!’”’ She will refer to them, 
comment upon them, retell them from a fresh 
angle and dramatize them. If the children are 
“ going to school to Jesus’ we must make Jesus 


familiar to them. His story, his every-day life, 
his teachings, must become a part of them. An 
ideal would be for the children to be so familiar 
with stories about him through repetition and 
constant handling of the pictures that when one 
finds himself face to face with a problem he can 
be sent to the pictures to find the answer himself. 
As the adult goes to the Bible, so the children 
return to the story, and one will be as truly 
** going to school” as the other. 


Report of School A 


Composing a Song 

LzeapER: What words shall we use? Some- 
thing like “ Father, we thank thee,” “ We thank 
thee for thy gifts,” or ‘‘ Hear us thank thee? ” 

Mase (second grade): ‘‘ Father, we thank 
thee.” 

CHILDREN: That’s not new. 

LEADER: That wouldn’t be our very own, would 
it? Every one think of all that God gives us, 
and make up a little verse to thank him. 

(Pause. All quietly thinking. Eileen, second 
grade, looks at leader.) 

Leaver: Eileen, can you think of something? 

(Eileen rises, and with no trace of self-con- 
sciousness says softly, “I love you, heavenly 
Father.” Absolute hush. The period was not 
at all as planned, but the worship could be felt. 
Eileen sat down.) 

ONE OF THE TEACHERS: That’s lovely, Eileen. 

Leaver: Did every one like that? 

(Every one did, but preferred “we” to “I,” 
and suggested “ thee’ instead of “* you.’’) 

Music Supervisor: Who can think of a little 
tune for it? 

(Children hummed quietly or thought.) 

Music Supervisor: How would you sing those 
words, Eileen? 

(Eileen rose again, and as unconsciously as 
before, sang, changing her words a trifle, the fol- 
lowing air, which the music supervisor harmonized. 


We 


love thee, heav-en-ly Fa - ther. 


ee 


FOURTH WEEKDAY 
Planning the Teachers’ Party 


Have a committee of mothers come to this 
session to help the children plan the teachers’ 
party. The children decide on date, time and 
form of invitations. They write invitations, the 
best to be sent, or let one write and all sign. 
Remind the children they couldn’t write without 
school, and couldn’t read what had been written 
without learning how. A child may make deco- 
rative border around invitation. 

Discuss what to have for refreshments. Figure 
on blackboard how much ice-cream is needed, if 
one quart will serve eight people. Remind the 
children that they couldn’t tell without a knowl- 
edge of arithmetic. 

Decide who shall order or see about the de- 
livery of refreshments the day of the party; who 
shall be in the kitchen to dish the ice-cream; who 
shall serve. 

Rehearse pantomime or play, and the song for 
teachers. Plan program in detail, and make 
favors. 

Appropriate games are Anagrams (illustrating 
reading) and Buzz (illustrating arithmetic). 

Nore: This session, having no story or set 
program, may be a little confused. The unac- 
customed informality in this and similar sessions 
may give rise to the problem of discipline. Be 
ready to discuss reason for order, the consequent 
necessity for rules or standards. Children and 
leader together may make up a story about “A 
Town that Had No Rules.” Discuss the ad- 
visability of children making some rules or 
standards for themselves. 


Report of School A 


Completing Party Plans 

As our weekday session is Saturday morning, 
the mothers could not come, but promised to 
furnish cake and cookies. The church would pay 
for the ice-cream. With mothers and the music 
supervisor (who taught them to interpret another 
kind of “ black marks’) there would be thirty- 
one to provide for. The children were all so 
eager to do the figuring they had to take turns. 
John was appointed to order the ice-cream. 

Joun (later, at home): I’m going to take my 
cart and get it, mother. They probably wouldn’t 
get it there on time. 

Anne and Florrie were chosen to come to the 


church the morning of the party, to get out the 
dishes, silver and napkins; the rest of the girls 
were to serve. All the boys but John were to get 
the room ready and set the stage. 

We waived the decorations. The writing of 
six invitations was enough of a task. Three third 
grades are represented in our class, and the chil- 
dren insisted on asking their last year’s teachers 
as well, — ‘‘ because we really learned to read in 
the second grade.” 

Questions which helped to compose the play: 

Shall we have costumes? How shall we fix the 
stage? Who will come on first? What shall 
these say? How will they make the audience 
understand that they come from Mars? 

Who will come on next? What shall they say 
and do to show that they cannot read the books 
or understand their surroundings? How shall 
they show that they “ give up?”’ 

Who will first express the wish for a fairy god- 
mother to interpret? Who will see one first? 
What shall they do then? Where shall the wands 
be? How shall they be given to the teachers? 
Shall the children go down to the audience, or 
ask the teachers to come to the stage? What 
directions will they give the teachers Who will 
give the signal? 

Who will reveal the mystery of the magic writ- 
ing on the blackboard? (Their song, to be writ- 
ten in chalk wet in milk and allowed to dry, 
concealed by other writing till that shall be 
erased.) 

Shall they read the poem when it is revealed, 
or sing it, letting the teachers read it? How will 
people know Anne composed the music? How 
shall the other song be introduced for which the 
class made the words and music? How will the 
visitors know that the play is over? 

(For the story of this play, see Fifth Weekday.) 
Problem of Disorder 

Much confusion. Leader discussed with the — 
children the reason for.order, but did not use a 
story. All wanted to talk at once and were 
almost too prolific in ideas for the play. 

(In the report of School A on the Twenty-sixth 
Weekday is described the organization of a 
‘council’? and the conducting of a council 
meeting. Leader regrets that such a council was 
not formed at the beginning of the year.) 


30 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 31 


We started to play games. John wouldn’t. 
He was needed to make an even number. Chil- 
dren spent so much time teasing him that all play 
was crowded out. John became unpopular. 

Lawrence: Now look what you did, — spoiled 
things so nobody can play! (Echoes from all. 
Nothing needed from leader.) 

Class rehearsed the play, though as nothing was 
written down, there were no set speeches. The 
children were to compose the lines as they went 
along. Rehearsal dragged. There was so much 
disorder, and the making of the wands proved so 
hard, that there was no time to make favors for 
teachers. . 

JoHn: Oh, dear, can’t we make the teachers’ 
presents in Sunday school tomorrow? 

It was decided that they could come early, go 
quietly to their corner behind the screen, and 
make the blotters. 

Interest Leading to Continued Work 

John stayed an hour after the others had left, 
to cut blotters the right size. Lawrence took 
home the largest wand to gild in his “ grand- 
father’s paint-shop.”’ Others took unfinished 
ones home. 

One child arrived earlier than the rest on Sun- 
day morning, and there being no one to direct 
her, ruined most of the blotters. John generously 
offered to come the following Saturday morning 
and repair damages. 


Report of School B 


Planning a Play 

The class planned to make up a simple play 
about teachers, and present, not at a party, but 
on Sunday, before the assistant superintendent of 
department, in charge of the third-grade classes, 
and also a public-school teacher of third grade. 
This would be a way of helping their classmates, 
not in the weekday session, to an appreciation of 
the work of their school teachers. 

Children gave the following suggestions for a 
play: Characters: Teacher and children. (Child 
asks what the black, puzzling marks in the books 
are.) 

Teacuer: They are words; I will teach you to 
read. 

Cup: I always thought H was a chair until 
my teacher told me what it was. 

(Teacher shows globe. Children ask what the 
green and blue and red mean.) 

Cuitp: Why, you're just like a fairy godmother. 
You make such wonderful changes! 

Cuitp: How does the sun come in my window 
in the morning? It wasn’t in sight when I went 
to bed. 

Tracuer: Did you ask your mother? 

Cuitp: Mother was too busy to find out for 
me. 


FIFTH SUNDAY 


October — November 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


Quiet Music. 
Prayer Song. 
for Little People). 

Song. ‘ Autumn Day.” 

Conversation. (Leader and children talk 
about some of the “ richest gifts”” to which the 
song refers. Children tell of secrets revealed by 
the falling of the leaves, such as bird’s-nests and 
cocoons. ) 


““ Father in Heaven” (Songs 


Praise Song. (Practised before.) 

Offering Song. “‘ Offering Hymn,” or “ We 
Give Thee but Thine Own,” (Songs for Little 
People). 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Recalling the Old. (Retell last Sunday’s 
story.) 
School A. The retelling of last Sun- 
day’s story occupied the entire period. 


(If the secret was not mentioned at the close 
last week, tell of it now, making “ going to school ” 
significant and desirable, hoping the children will 
respond by wishing they had some such secret. 
Perhaps they have already expressed themselves 
as wanting “to go to school to Jesus.” If so 
let them now choose a picture which will be used 
as a reminder of their wish through the year. 
Ask if they would like a kind of school song.) If 
we are thinking of Jesus as our teacher, we ought 
to know the rule for all his pupils, the Golden 
Rule. (Read Luke 6:31. Say there is a tune 
to it, and ask if they’d like to know it. Sing first 
section of “The Golden Rule,” in Songs for 
Little People, —‘‘ As ye would others should 
to you, so,” Jesus said, “to others do.” End 
here, on G rather than on D, and it will make a 
complete little song to use over and over through 
the year, as another reminder of our special 
school.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 
Birthday Service. (Greetings and song.) 
Conversation. (About the wonder of growth, 
and more talk about changes in nature.) 
Praise Songs. (Practised before.) 


32 


Prayer. (Leader draws from the children ideas 
for a prayer in which the original refrain may be 
used, if the children have made one.) 


What School A Did 


Since the words, ‘‘ We love thee, heavenly 
Father,”’ had been chosen and the tune composed 
by the children, the following suggestions for a 
prayer were offered: 

“J thank him for our fathers and mothers.” 
‘‘T thank him for my teacher.” ‘“‘ The trees.” 
‘The flowers.” ‘‘ The grass.” ‘“‘ The color of 
the leaves.” ‘‘ Our food.’ ‘“‘ Our birthdays.” 
“My mother’s come home from the hospital.” 
‘“‘T’m well from the measles.” 

The prayer was something like this: 

Dear Father, thou hast done so much for us 
we would like to tell thee how we love thee and 
thank thee. 

For giving us mothers and fathers to love us 
and take care of us, we love thee, heavenly 
Father. 

(Refrain sung): WE LOVE THEE, HEAVENLY 
FATHER. 

For our teachers, who have spent so many 
years learning things to teach us, we love thee, 
heavenly Father. 

(Refrain sung): WE LOVE THEE, HEAVENLY 
FATHER. 

For giving us this beautiful world, with its 
flowers, its trees, the grass; for the color of the 
leaves in autumn, we love thee, heavenly Father. 

(Refrain sung): WE LOVE THEE, HEAVENLY 
FATHER. 

For our birthdays, and for all the loving 
thoughts and good times which they bring; for 
good health, because we know that thou art the 
giver of every good and every perfect gift, we 
love thee, heavenly Father. 

(Refrain sung): WE LOVE THEE, HEAVENLY 
FATHER. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


The New Story 
Tue First Four Pupits 1n Jesus’ ScHOOL. 
(This is vividly told in the chapter, ‘ Four 
Boys Who Became His Disciples,’ in Rufus 
Jones’ The Boy Jesus and His Companions. 
Reading it over cannot fail to impress upon the 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 33 


mind pictures and touches of local color which 
will enrich the Bible account, and make the char- 
acters live for the children. The following shows 
how acquaintance with the book is bound to 
color one’s own story. Its length is better suited 
to this fifteen-minute period. See Luke 5: 1-11.) 


There were once four boys who lived on the 
shore of a lake. Simon and Andrew were broth- 
ers, and so were James and John. Their 
fathers were partners and carried on a fishing 
business in the town of Capernaum. 


If you have ever lived near the water you can 
imagine what fun those four boys had playing in 
the sand and in the water, learning to swim, 
making toy sailboats and watching the wind 
carry them away. 


The greatest fun of all was going out on the 
lake in the big boats. They loved to watch their 
fathers let down the fish nets and haul them in 
again full of fish. Sometimes the nets were so 
heavy the boys had to help pull them out. They 
learned to be quite skillful in knowing just where 
to let down the nets, and gradually they become 
very good fishermen. After a fishing trip they 
learned from their fathers how to take care of 
the nets washing them clean of mud and seaweed, 
and mending any holes in them. 


It was a long time, however, before they were 
allowed to go out on the lake by themselves. 
The boats were heavy and the muscles in their 
arms were not strong enough to handle the oars 
in a storm. Sometimes these storms were very 
dangerous. There were mountains all around 
the lake, and through the cuts in those mountains 
the wind would come sweeping suddenly, whip- 
ping the water into great waves and tossing the 
big boats about as if they were only paper ones. 
It took all the strength of the men at the oars 
to get a boat safely to shore again. It was ex- 
citing, even though frightening, and the boys 
felt as if they had gone through an adventure 
when the storm disappeared as unexpectedly as 
it had come. 


They were proud when they were old enough 
to help steer the boats and handle the oars, and 
prouder still the first time they were allowed to 
go out alone, and catch fish for their own lunches. 
I like to think of them pulling in a net-full, 
dividing the fish between them, taking some to 
their families and keeping the rest to cook for 
themselves over a fire on the shore, and to eat 


with the little loaves of bread their mothers had 
baked for them. I like to think of what they 
talked about, — these boys growing up together. 
Sometimes it was about the big catch they’d taken 
and how badly the nets had broken; sometimes 
— after one of those sudden, terrifying storms on 
the lake — of how they thought they’d surely be 
tipped overboard, and what a pity it was that 
they had had to throw out all the fish they’d 
caught to lighten the boat. They had been glad 
enough to get the boat safely to shore though, for 
it would have been pretty hard swimming in 
such a gale. 

Then I think they talked of their future — 
what they would do when they grew up, just as 
you boys do. Fishing was their fathers’ business 
and it would probably be theirs, for they were 
learning to be very skillful at it. They hardly 
ever went out without returning with a big catch. 
There were four of them; they would be partners 
together. With so many they could have a big 
business, not only among the people in Caper- 
naum, their own city, but all over Palestine. 
Everybody knew about Tarichezee down at the 
other end of the lake, where quantities of fish were 
dried and pickled to be sent all over the world. 
Perhaps the boys could sometime make Caper- 
naum as famous a pickling place as Tarichee. 
Whatever they dreamed of becoming, I think it 
always had something to do with the lake — 
their lake, which they knew and loved so well. 
They swam in it, they rowed upon it, they could 
prove themselves master of it in a storm, they got 
their living from it. It was a part of them, and 
they of it. 

At any rate they grew taller and stronger and - 
more clever year by year. One evening James 
and John and their father, Simon and Andrew and 
some hired helpers went out on to the lake in 
two boats, prepared to fish all night. 

Into the water they threw their nets, and 
waited. When it was time to draw them up they 
found nothing in them. They tried again, and 
again. In the other boat it was the same. No 
matter how often they let down the nets, the 
results were just as disappointing. Morning 
came, and still no fish. Finally, tired and hungry, 
they gave up, rowed back to shore and landed. 
Their nets had caught nothing all night but 
floating, muddy weeds, and the men spread them 
out and started to clean them. 

They were so busy that they did not notice at 


34 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


first that there were many more people than 
usual on the beach. The crowd kept growing 
larger and larger, trying to get as near as possible 
to one person who was talking. At last they 
pressed in so close that this one stepped into one 
of the empty boats he saw. It was Simon’s, and 
when Simon looked up this person asked him if 
he wouldn’t row him out a little way. Simon was 
attracted to him and he and Andrew at once 
rowed him out. And sitting in the boat a little 
way from the shore, this man began to teach the 
crowds and crowds of people who had come to 
listen. It was like nothing they had ever heard 
before. Simon and Andrew listened as though 
they could never hear enough. This man seemed 
to know all things; he was explaining puzzles 
which had bothered them all their lives. It was 
no wonder that the people called him the great 
Teacher. 

Suddenly the Teacher turned to them. ‘ Row 
out where it is deep,” he said, ‘‘ and let down 
your nets for a draught of fishes.” 

“Master,” said Simon, ‘“ we toiled all night 
and took nothing. Still’ — for he saw by now 
that this Teacher knew more than they, — “ still 
at thy word I will let down the nets.” 

The nets were dropped over the edge of the 
boat. Scarcely had it been done when Simon and 
Andrew, looking down into the clear water, saw 
hundreds of fish swimming into the nets, and they 
had to shout to their partners to come and help 
pull them in, there were so many. 

Simon suddenly felt as if he were in the presence 
of a very great man. This Teacher, whom men 
called Jesus, was wiser and more helpful than any 
one Simon had ever seen, and Simon himself felt 
very small and mean. He wanted Jesus to go 
away — he felt as if he, himself, was not good 
enough to stay with such a man. 

But Jesus, who knew things even before he was 
told, instead of going away and leaving him, 
asked Simon to go with him. And he asked 
Andrew and James and John. 


Perhaps the four partners thought of the im- 
portant things they had meant to do later; per- 
haps they hated to think of leaving their beloved 
lake. But if the wisest and most wonderful 
teacher in the whole world should ask you to 
come with him and be his special pupils, would 
you care about those other things? If Simon 
and Andrew and James and John even gave them 
a thought no one knows it, for the story says 
(read Luke 5 : 11) ‘‘ And when they had brought 
their boats to land, they left all, and followed 
him.” 

And those were the first four pupils who de- 
cided to go to school to Jesus. 

(Show pictures, “‘ Christ and the Fishermen,” 
Beginners’ Picture Set No. 2, International 
Graded Lessons, and “‘ Jesus and the Fishermen,” 
Primary Picture Set No. 2.) 


School A. Did not use this story to- 
day. Finished the one started last Sunday. 


Report of School A 
Paying Back 

Class remained after dismissal to write invita- 
tions. Something happened. When leader no- 
ticed, John and Stuart were at each other’s 
throats. Children — alas! right after the George 
Kling story making “ tattling ’’ so undesirable — 
all eager to tell who was to blame. John left in 
tears. Stuart stayed voluntarily after the others 
left. It appeared that John had thrown his hat 
—a brand new one with stiff vizor — at Stuart, 
who had crushed it before throwing it back. 
John, furious, jumped on Stuart. Chose his 
opponent unfortunately, for Stuart never missed 
an opportunity to hit back. 

Stuart (afterward): I’m going to hit back if 
anybody hits me first. 

Leader sympathized with the feeling but tried to 
make it desirable that our class learn a better 
way. Recalled story of Saul and David. Stuart 
meekly admitted he liked David’s doing what he 
did. 


FIFTH WEEKDAY 
Party for Children’s Day-School Teachers 


Report of School A 
The Party 


Committees came in the morning to set stage, 
rehearse play, get out dishes, order ice-cream, 
sort out costumes, finish blotters. 

Six children absent from illness. (Marian, when 
she heard the doctor’s verdict the day before, 
burst into tears. ‘‘ But mother,’ she wept, 
“the whole play will be spoiled without me! ”’) 

Our guests: Five teachers, four mothers, the 
minister, his wife, the church-school superinten- 
dent and two chance visitors. 


The master of ceremonies becoming suddenly. 


very self-conscious in his costume from Mars, 
refused to come before the assembly and start 
off the program. All were equally self-conscious. 
So leader introduced the program by speaking of 
the play which the children had made up, and 
said she would retell the story which had sug- 
gested it, “ The Fairy Godmother’s Gifts.” 
The Play 

‘Serrine: A schoolroom, maps, books and other 
paraphernalia around. A blackboard in center 
covered with unintelligible marks. Sheet of 
music, piano, globe. 

Two children entered and gazed in surprise and 
wonder at surroundings. 

First Cuitp: What a funny place! 
up books.) What are these? 

SeconD Curtp: What does that mean? What 
are all these funny black marks? (More children 
entered.) 

OnE Cup: Do you see any sense to this place? 

Awnotuer: No, I can’t make it out at all. 

ANOTHER: It isn’t a bit like Mars, where we 
come from. 

ANOTHER: What can those marks mean? 

ANOTHER: I give it up. 

AnoTHER: So do I. I’m going back to Mars, 
where I came from! 

(All sat down on the floor in a brown study, after 
examining everything on the stage and understanding 
nothing.) 

OnE Cuitp: Oh, dear, I wish I had a fairy 
godmother to touch my eyes and ears! 

ANOTHER (suddenly): I see one! (pointing to 
her teacher and jumping up). 


(Picked 


35 


ANOTHER (same business): So do I! 


(All went to a shelf and got wands; took them to 
teachers in audience.) 

Eacu Cuitp: Please touch my eyes and ears! 

(Teachers good-naturedly entered into the spirit 
of it and obeyed. One was given an eraser covered 
with gold paper and a star-tipped wand tacked to 
its back, and told to erase the writing on the black- 
board. As children’s eyes and ears were touched 
they pretended to be dazed at first, then began to look 
around.) 

CHILDREN’S SURPRISED REMARKS: 

“Why, these black marks are letters, —I can 
read them! It’s a story about Indians! ” 

** And these are figures! ”’ 

‘This is a globe, showing all parts of this 
planet, the earth. I can find on it exactly where 
we are.” 

OnE CHILD (going to the piano with the sheet of 
music and starting to play): I can even read these 
marks, — they’re music! 

(Then they all stared at the blackboard on which, 
as the teacher erased, the magic writing changed to 
intelligible words — to the amazement of the teacher 
erasing). 

(The verses were first printed on the board 
with chalk which had been dipped in milk. As 
soon as it was dry, meaningless hieroglyphics 
were added to each letter with dry chalk, spaces 
filled in, every word doctored so that it was un- 
readable. When the board was erased all the 
superfluous marks disappeared, leaving only the 
original printing. This feature of the entertain- 
ment appeared to be real magic.) 

Au. (as the verse emerged): Why, we can read 
that, too! 


(Stood around board and sang the words:) 


Our teachers are like fairies; 
They touch our eye or ear, 

And give a sudden meaning 
To all we see and hear. 


Learning is like magic; 
The teacher waves her wand, 
And suddenly our eyes and minds 
Can see and understand. 


36 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


JoHn: Anne made the tune to that song. Now 
we're going to sing another. We made the words 
and music to this. 

(All sang, “‘ When We Were Little Children.’’) 

JouHN (concluding the ceremonies): This ends our 
program. 

(Children then rushed madly to the kitchen; 
John and two others to the drug store for the ice- 
cream.) 

Hosts and Hostesses in Evolution 

After the program all were eager to serve the 
guests, but there their consciousness of the duties 
of hosts and hostesses ended. Becoming suddenly 
self-conscious (or exclusive!) they took their ice- 
cream behind the screens to enjoy, far from the 
madding crowd. John even preferred to eat 
his in the kitchen to coming in contact with the 
invited guests. 

Leaver: But you see this is your party. You 
invited them here. If you went to a party would 
the friend who invited you stay in the kitchen 
for his refreshments, or go into another room 
from youd How funny our guests will think we 
are! Come on, bring your chairs out and be 
sociable. 

FiorriE: No, I’m going to stay here. 

Stuart: I’m going to go out there. 

LEADER: That’s fine, Stuart, thank you. 

LAWRENCE: So’m I. 

Fiorrie: I'll come too. 

(See report of Seventeenth Weekday to show 


vast improvement in acting as hosts and host- 
esses.) 
After the party a perfectly unnatural desire to 
wash the dishes prevailed — probably an excuse 
to stay longer — practically a fight for the honor 
of dish washer. Leader had to divide work into 
sections. 

Friorriz’s Moruer: If only she showed the 
same enthusiasm to help at home! 


Florrie Takes the Blame 

Leader discovered Harvey Newton and Florrie 
in Beginners’ room alone. Harvey showed her a 
badly bruised finger. 

Leaper: Why, Harvey, that must have hurt 
awfully! How did you do it? 

Fiorrie (who likes to tell on other children, at 
once): I did it. I jammed it in the door And 
he didn’t cry. He started to, but he didn’t. 

Leader could not refrain from exclaiming, 
‘ Florrie, that was fine of you to tell me at once,” 
before attending to Harvey. It was the first 
time she ever knew Florrie to blame herself. 
She told Harvey he reminded her of another 
brave boy she would tell him about sometime. 
(See Hike, Sixth Weekday.) 


Invitation to Plan a Service 

The church-school superintendent asked them 
if they would like to plan a Thanksgiving service 
for the whole church school. Assent unanimous 
and hearty. 


SIXTH SUNDAY 


November 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Make this a Thanksgiving praise service, using 
all the verses and songs of praise and thanks- 
giving which the children know, such as “ Back 
of the Loaf,” and the refrain of “‘ We Plough the 
Fields.’’) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Recalling the Old. .(Dramatization based on 
last Sunday’s story. If dramatization is new to 
leader, a visit to the public schools will help her. 
See report of School A in Fourth Weekday pro- 
gram, for the kind of questions used to start the 
children’s initiative. For other types of drama- 
tization see report of School A on Ninth Sunday, 
second class period, and on Fifteenth Sunday.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


Conversation and Prayer. (Lead the child- 
ren’s thoughts to all the workers behind such 
necessities and comforts as a furnace fire, or this 
morning’s breakfast, making a list of these per- 
sons on the board. Let the children make a 
prayer, using the department’s refrain, thanking 
God for all who make these comforts possible.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 
The New Story. 
Tue Discovery or Happy VALLEY 


I told you that I should tell you some day how 
Happy Valley was discovered and why it had in 
it at first only a church and some houses. 

The story begins with a runaway balloon. It 
was one of six which started off together for a race, 
but this one soared higher than the rest, and then 
striking a current of air which the others did not 
feel, began to veer off on its own course. It 
acted exactly as though it were running away. 

You can imagine how the man inside enjoyed 
sailing through the air and wondering where he 
would turn up. He had a long time to wonder, 
for the breeze seemed to be playing a game with 
him. It took him up above the clouds, and sent 


37 


him this way and that, until he had completely 
lost his bearings. 

For hours and hours this kept up, until finally, 
just as he was beginning to wonder if he was 
anywhere at all, the clouds parted, and he looked 
over the edge of the basket. There below him 
lay a broad, sunny, happy-looking valley, with a 
laughing blue river winding through it. As he 
looked the wind stopped blowing, and the balloon, 
as if realizing that this was a fortunate place to 
land, began slowly to grow smaller and sink to 
the ground. The man could hardly wait for it 
to touch the earth. He jumped out and began 
at once to explore. There were fish in the river, 
berries on bushes, all sorts of fruit and growing 
things in the wide, fertile valley and mountains 
all about. Trees covered some. Others showed 
miles of solid marble, and still others were streaked 
with veins of rich ore. 

The man could not believe his eyes. Why had 
it never been discovered before? Untold wealth 
lay hid in the mountains, and in the valley with 
its rich soil and broad river. He must hurry and 
tell every one of his discovery. But his balloon 
was no more of any use, and when he tried to find 
a way out he realized why no one had discovered 
the place. There were no roads in or out, and the 
high mountains completely hid the valley. At 
last he came to a narrow pass between two foot 
hills where the river left the valley, and following 
its course he also made his way out. 

Once out he hurried to tell others about his 
discovery. He traveled for miles before he met 
any one. Then he came upon a woodman with 
an axe and cart. 

“T have found a happy valley,” he called to 
him. “It is surrounded by mountains of forests. 
Take your axes and carts, and tell your family 
and friends of the treasure waiting for them!” 
And he ran on. 

Next he saw men with pickaxes and shovels. 
“T have just left treasure beyond even your 
dreaming,” he said. “‘ Take your shovels and 
picks and bars and see for yourselves.” 

He passed farmers trying to get a living out of 
poor rocky land. 

“There are acres upon acres of rich and fertile 
land in the happy valley I have found,” he cried. 
“Take your horses, your ploughs and all the seed 


38 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


you can carry. There is meadow-land and 
pasture-land for all your cattle and water in 
plenty.” 

To those in a crowded, smoky city he promised, 
“In my happy valley is pure air and sunshine and 
space to breathe.” 


To fishermen he said, ‘‘ There are more fish in 
the river in Happy Valley than you have ever 
seen”’; and to carpenters and builders he ad- 
vised, “‘ Pack up your saws and your hammers 
and nails. We shall need homes in the happy 
valley.” 

You cannot wonder that one after another of 
the people he met said, ‘‘ Let us find the way to 
this place and go and live there and find its 
treasure.” 

So it came about that in a short time whole 
families brought all they owned to Happy Valley 
to make it their home. Some went to the forests, 
and there they found tall trees waiting to be cut 
down and built into homes. Others began to dig 
for treasure. Gold and silver and pure white 
marble were waiting to be mined and quarried. 

The farmers ploughed the fields and found the 
soil even finer than they had hoped for. Fisher- 
men gave one look at the river and made plans 
for a big fishing business. 

The pure air and the sunshine were all that had 
been promised, and sick people began to feel 
better as soon as they reached the valley. It was 
a paradise for them, and for children as well. 

Now when all the people had found what 
treasure there was for them in this new place, 
whether it was in the mountains, the forest, the 
land or the river, they were filled with a great 
thankfulness. Here was promise for food, shel- 
ter, prosperity and happiness. One and all felt 
like singing. 

“Let us sing to God,” some one said, “ for it 
was God’s winds which led us to know of this 
place. The mountains are his, the waters and 
the dry land.” 

** And all for us to use,” cried another. 
us give thanks to God.” 

“Yes,” came from all directions, for a great 
crowd had gathered. It seemed that every one 
felt the same. 

Some did not know as much about God as 
others, but most of them had brought Bibles with 
them, and many remembered parts they had 
learned. Now some one began to lead all the 


** Let 


others. He was using words which people 
thousands of years before had used when they 
felt thankful for all God had given them. 

“* Oh, come, let us sing unto the Lord,” he was 
saying, and others began to join in, for they knew 
these verses; they had learned them when they 
were children. 


“‘ Let us come before his presence with thanks- 
giving,” they went on. 

“Let us make a joyful noise unto him with 
Psalms.” 


They too were making a joyful noise unto him, 
and with a Psalm, or song. Gradually more and 
more people joined in. It was thrilling to hear. 

‘Tn his hand are the deep places of the earth; ”’ 
—the voices of the miners and quarrymen and 
the woodmen were heard above the others now — 

“The heights of the mountains are his also.” 

“The sea is his, and he made it; 

And his hands formed the dry land.” 

The farmers, the gardeners and the fishermen 
were loudest now. 

‘‘Oh, come, let us worship and bow down, 

Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.” 


And they all knelt there together in what was 
to be the very center of the town. 

As they stood up again, somebody started a 
song. It began, ‘‘ Praise God from whom all 
blessings flow.”” And when it was over some- 
body else shouted, ‘‘ Let us build a house for God, 
even before our own homes are finished. Then 
we shall always have a place to worship him 
together.” 

All the people said, ‘“ Let us!” and that is the 
reason why Happy Valley had a church before it 
had a school house, or a town hall or a library. 

(The use of this Psalm is suggested for the 
Thanksgiving worship service.) 


Note on the Thanksgiving Worship Service 


As a second step in the training of the third- 
grade children in worship (see discussions on 
pages 6 and 12), provision is made for them 
to plan a Thanksgiving service of worship of their 
own. This will take place on the Sunday before 
Thanksgiving, either in their own department, in 
the main section of the church school, or in the 
church auditorium, the last preferred. It will be 
in no sense an exhibition of what the class has 
learned. It should be a worshipful service, 
planned thoughtfully by the children themselves, 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 39 


presented as a gift to their heavenly Father in a 
spirit of reverence and thankfulness, and shared 
with their friends. They will have memorized 
one or two Psalms to be used, chosen the respon- 
sive reading, learned the hymns, and furnished 
not only the prayer which the pastor, superinten- 
dent or leader will offer on the occasion, but also 
the original response to be sung as a refrain 
throughout the prayer. 

The word “rehearse” will never be used in 
connection with the preparation of it. Parts of 
it will occur repeatedly in departmental programs 
preceding Thanksgiving, as familiar worship 
material; parts of it will be really studied; but 
it will never be gone through as a whole until the 
Sunday before Thanksgiving. 

After the service, either on that day or in the 


next weekday session, the children should have a 
chance to talk over the program. 


Report of School A 


Adjustments on a Stormy Sunday 

Only two Primary children present outside 
third-grade class. We had one worship period, 
with children composing prayer and choosing 
songs. ‘Then the leader told to all the story of 
Christ choosing the first four disciples, given in 
Fifth Sunday program, but not used by us. 

Children of third grade took home copies of the 
ninety-fifth Psalm to learn. The minister was 
willing to have the Thanksgiving program take 
the place of the usual Sunday morning church 
service. 


SIXTH WEEKDAY 
Hike 


The object is to discover November secrets, to 
gather bird’s-nests, cocoons and other nature 
material for decoration of the department. Re- 
calling the story of the discovery of Happy Valley 
may lead to a short praise service out-of-doors. 
Use hymns and verses as far as possible which 
will be part of the Thanksgiving service. 


Report of School A on Hike 


Challenging Remarks and Incidents 

Leader took to the church a cocoon of the 
prometheus moth, also a mounted prometheus 
and polyphemus moth for children to examine 
before we went on our hike for cocoons. Found 
three bird’s-nests, one hornet’s nest, four golf 
balls (apparently the principal prizes), gentians, 
everlastings and ferns, but no cocoons. 

Harvey, whose finger had been hurt last week, 
was with us. 

Joun (whose mother had happened in at the 
critical moment and taken Harvey home with her): 
My, but he was brave! He never cried all the 
time mother was doing it up, and it must have 
hurt like sixty! 

Leader told the story she had promised, ‘‘ One 
of the Crowd,” from Tell Me a Hero Story, by 
Mary Stewart. 

In the woods when the boys were wishing they 
had brought their guns, there were so many wood- 
chuck holes, leader told Professor St. John’s story 
about the boy who set his dog to burrowing into 
a woodchuck’s hole for the fun of seeing a fight 
between the woodchuck and dog. The closing 
words, “‘ And that boy never again set his dog 
on a woodchuck for fun,’ brought the response 
from two boys, “I shouldn’t think he would.” 

(On the way out and on the way back): “O 
Miss Bradley, I’m so glad you have this class!” 

Sruart (in the woods): We'll have to help Miss 
Bradley, fellas, down this steep part. Here, take 
that limb out of the way! 

Joun (going through Soldiers’ Home grounds): 
I’d like to make something for the old soldiers 
sometime. Why couldn’t our class make some- 
thing for them? 


40 


LEADER: That would be fine, if we could think 
of anything we could make which they’d care for. 

(See how John’s suggestion was followed up in 
the Christmas program planning, report of School 
A on Twelfth Weekday.) 

LEapER (discovering two of the boys with clenched 
fists, and tense anger in their expressions, about to 
spring at each other): Want some cookies, boys? 
(Immediate relaxing of muscles; prompt action with 
the cooky bag.) 

On the road the boys suddenly, with one ac- 
cord, burst into a delightfully wicked song, watch- 
ing the while to see what the leader would do. 

‘* Hell, hell, the gang’s all here!’ they shouted, 
all the more gleefully since motors were passing. 

‘“‘ What the hell do we care? 

What the hell do we care? ” 

Not knowing what to say, but seeing their 
waiting expressions, and not caring for the opin- 
ion passing motorists were gaining of us, leader 
couldn’t ignore it. 

“In the first place, boys,” she said practically, 
“you're not singing that right. It isn’t ‘ Hell, 
hell, the gang’s all here,’ but, ‘ Hail, hail!’ and 
in the second place, the people whom I choose 
for friends don’t use that kind of language. They 
think it is tough, and I don’t see why I should 
choose to go hiking with people who use it, do 
you?” (Sheepish giggles; then something else 
took their attention. No more “trying out” 
that day.) 

Fiorrie’s Morner (at home): Who behaved 
best on the hike? 

Fiorrie: Harvey Newton was best of the boys; 
I was best of the girls. (The two girls present 
were rather subdued by the eight boys.) 
Problems of the Hike 

Running across people’s lawns 

Picking greens for teachers from trees with- 
out regard to ownership 

Eating watercress from any brook they came 


across 
“Shut up, Lawrence!” “ You darn fool! dc 
(See report of School A in next weekday pro- 


gram.) 


SEVENTH SUNDAY 


November 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 

(Use in this period thanksgiving verses and songs 
which the children know, particularly those which 
are to be part of the Thanksgiving worship service 
being planned by the class. Speak briefly of the 
first Thanksgiving day, reading Psalm 100 as one 
which was probably used. The children may 
join in the verses they know. If a special offer- 
ing is to be taken next Sunday, refer to it as a 
“ thank-offering.”’) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 

Making Use of the Familiar. (Definitely de- 
cide on all the material for the Thanksgiving 
service. Make a tentative “order of service” 
to be submitted to the minister and church-school 
superintendent. Plan to invite them to the 
next weekday session, and explain about it.) 

What School A Did 


Used the picture of the “‘ Great Teacher” in 
planning our service, looking at it often. Psalm 
100 and the Lord’s Prayer were definitely de- 
cided upon. Psalm 95 had not yet been learned. 

Joun: I wish we hadn’t said we’d do it! 

FRANKIE: So do I. 

Leaver: Oh, dear! Do you all feel that way? 

FLorrigE (amused): You look so surprised! 

Leaver: I am. Why, Miss Fairfield (superin- 
tendent) is depending on us, and Mr. Greene 
(minister) announced it in church this morning. 
And now you're talking as if you’d like to back 
out! 

FiorriE (soothingly): We can do it all right. 

Sruart: [ll try my best. 

OTHERS: Sure, we all will! 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 

(If possible have the minister present for this 
period. He will better understand about the 
prayer. 

(One third-grade child tells the rest of the de- 
partment the plans for the program for the next 
Sunday; asks for their help. A child or the 
minister reads the chosen verses of Psalm 136, 
asking the entire department to join in the re- 
sponse: For his loving kindness endureth forever.) 


Songs. (Praise songs to be used in the service.) 

Prayer. (Leader asks the department for sug- 
gestions for a prayer of thanksgiving which the 
minister will make next Sunday, and in which 
they can use their refrain.) 


School A. Entire department sug- 
gested the following: Wheat, earth, health, 
clothes, grass, trees, food, wood (for houses 
and fires), birds, mothers, fathers, grand- 
mothers, brothers, sisters, teachers, king 
(by the son of a Canadian). Suggestion 
promptly changed by Americans to Presi- 
dent.) 


(Speak again of next Sunday’s offering, whether 
it is to be of money or gifts of food. Let the 
children choose the “ giving” song for their 
service, to be sung at the time the offering shall 
be taken). 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


A New Experience. (Take the class into the 
church auditorium where the Thanksgiving service 
will be. Ask the minister to go with you to an- 
swer questions and help you explain the meaning 
of whatever symbols there may be in the archi- 
tecture, the furnishings, the decorations, the win- 
dows. Use stories where possible.) 

(Let all this bedone in a spirit of reverence which 
the children will feel and give to others through 
their worship service. 

(While in the church, let them repeat together 
the verses of Psalm 95, which they have just 
learned, sing a praise song, read Psalm 100, or 
pray again the prayer just formed, using the re- 
frain. Or let the minister read Psalm 136 while 
they give the responses.) 


Report of School A 


A Visit to Church Auditorium 

This was a great success. Leader told about 
people who regarded their church as so sacred as 
to remove shoes before entering. (Poor idea; 
they all wanted to try it at once.) She said that 
the minister would ‘take us into the church and 
explain parts of it to us. 

FRANKIE: What did he do to those babies that 
day when he put his hand in the water? 

Al 


42 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Leaver: He'll tell you. 

When minister joined us, all formed in line and 
followed him into church. Leader told him the 
question about baptism. He stopped at font and 
explained the ceremony and the significance of it, 
as following an ancient custom of parents bring- 
ing their children to the church to present them 
to the Lord, citing presentation of Jesus. He 
called attention to the pulpit, gift of and designed 
by an architect in New York, and told how par- 
ticular he always is when it is moved, that it 
may not be treated carelessly. He said the boys 
might be trustees or deacons some day, and have 
these things in their care. They might even be 
the movers sometime. They would know how to 
do it carefully. 

He showed them the communion table, and 
told them the story of the breaking of bread at 
the Last Supper and Christ’s request. They read 
the carved words in the oak: “ This do in re- 
membrance of me.” Children noticed the simi- 
larity in the design of this table and the pulpit 
furniture — all the careful work of the New York 
artist. The carpet was spoken of, that it alone 
cost $1,000, that spiked shoes and running about 
were hard on it. The decorations on the wall 
were examined and appreciated as the work for 
weeks of several men. The finish of the pews 
was remarked upon. One showed where a child’s 
feet had scratched the pew in front. A boy 
noticed a hole in a window, the result of boys 


throwing stones at a hornet’s nest in the eaves. 
General resentment. 

When the children were admiring the interior 
as a whole, and particularly deploring scratched 
woodwork, the minister remarked to leader, 
“T’ve always dreaded the suggestion of movies 
being shown in this church. If it were for our 
own church people who cared, I shouldn’t mind, 
but for everybody — ” 

CHILDREN (interrupting): Oh, no! 

Trina (visions of Harte’s Theater in her mind): 
Oh, it would be an awful mess! 

After having examined parts and the whole, 
children seated themselves in the front seat and 
as the minister, in front of them, read Psalm 136, 
they responded as they would next Sunday with, 
‘“‘ His loving kindness endureth forever.” 

Resutt: The children gained a new under- 
standing of the church auditorium, its use, its 
beauty, its cost, and an appreciation of its parts. 
Hereafter, if they run around in it, they will at 
least feel uncomfortable. 


Shouldering the Blame 

ONE OF THE Boys (speaking of yesterday’s hike 
after the session): Gee, we got the dickens when 
we got home, it was so late. 

Leaver: That was my fault, and I’m sorry. 
You tell your mothers — 

Boy (interrupting): No, it was not your fault. 
It was ours, because we wouldn’t hurry when you 
told us to. 


ee 


SEVENTH WEEKDAY 
Preparation for Thanksgiving 


The Service 

Study and repeat portions to be memorized for 
the Thanksgiving service. Perfect the service. 

If any members were not present last Sunday 
and the church is open, go into the auditorium 
again. Let those who were present before act as 
guides to those who were not, explaining interest- 
ing and beautiful objects. All repeat one of the 
Psalms or sing a song to be used the following 
Sunday. 

Make plans to deliver after church the harvest 
offering which may be brought. 


Thanksgiving Story 


“Much and More,” from The Golden Goblet, 
by J. T. Stocking, in abridged form in The May- 
flower Program Book, Perkins and Danielson; or 
“The King’s Thanksgiving,” in Tell Me Another 
Story, by Carolyn S. Bailey, and The Second Year 
Mayflower Program Book, Perkins and Danielson; 
The Ten Lepers, Luke 17: 11-19, retold in 
Teacher's Text Book, Course III, Part 1, Inter- 
national Graded Lessons. 


Making Thanksgiving Place-Cards 


Use the time that remains for making Thanks- 
giving favors or place-cards, or for finishing those 
which may have been started last week. These 
will be carried home by the children and used at 
their Thanksgiving dinner parties. 


Report of School A 


Preparation for Thanksgiving Service 

Showed the children programs which would be 
handed to congregation tomorrow. Explained 
parts, but it bored them. Minister took them 
into church again to try reading the lesson 
(Psalm 95) with their help. They went on the 
platform and recited Psalm. No other “ re- 
hearsing,” as pianist was not present. 


‘The Great Teacher” 

Boy (discovering the Christian flag on return to 
room): What is it, the Red Cross flag? 

Leaver: No, it is the Christian flag. You'll 
find it in every church, and any one who is a 
Christian has a right to carry it. 

Joun: We’re Christians, aren’t we? 


ONE (fo another a little later): You darn fool! 

LrapER: Come and sit down. I want to talk 
to you. Frankie, get the Christian flag and hold 
it a minute. During our hike last week I heard 
you boys call each other over and over — and 
I’ve heard it twice today —, ‘“‘ You darn fool.” 
John, a few minutes ago you asked what flag that 
was, and I told you it was the Christian flag. 
You said, ‘‘We’re Christians, aren’t we?” 
We’re only Christians so long as we try to act and 
talk and think in the way Jesus Christ would. 
(Showed picture of Jesus.) Can you imagine 
Jesus calling anybody a darn fool? 

Boys (in sincere horror): No! 

Leaver: Even if he belonged to another 
race, or if he was supposed to be stupid or in 
any way not equal to him? 

Boys (looking at picture, and still in horrified 
tones): No! 

Leaver: [’ll tell you a story about how he 
treated somebody whom everybody else looked 
down upon. People wouldn’t even go near him, 
or let him come near them. Besides having a 
dreadful disease which was forty times worse 
than the measles, because you never got over it, 
and so all your life had to keep away from people, 
this man was a Samaritan. I can’t tell you how 
the Jews hated the Samaritans and looked down 
on them. You know Jesus was a Jew. It would 
be natural for him to look down upon a Samari- 
tan. (Told story of the ten lepers.) 

ONE oF THE Boys (looking at picture): And he 
was the only one that had the sense to say 
“Thank you! ” 

Leaver: It’s a good Thanksgiving story, isn’t 
it? 

We talked more about the Christian flag — 
spoke of its being the only one in the world which 
was allowed by our government to hang above 
the United States flag. Frankie got tired of 
holding it upright and let it drop a little. : 

Tommy AND JoHN (together): Let me hold it. 
He doesn’t know how to treat it! ” 


Puzzling Problem 

We played a game. John would not join, but 
nearly broke his neck craning it to see the cause 
of the frequent shrieks. Should leader keep at 
him to join? 


44. AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


A Story 

Told ‘Much and More.” They loved Mr. 
Stocking’s name — thought it so appropriate for 
Christmas! Enthusiastic about the story itself. 
Frequent interruptions at first. Apparently im- 
possible for Lawrence to concentrate for more 
than thirty seconds. Finally when leader stopped 
so frequently that others were disgusted, Lawrence 
himself said with great firmness, ‘‘ There, I’m 
going to put this knife in my pocket, and I’m not 
going to touch it again until the story’s finished. 
Go on, Miss Bradley.”” Went on to end. 


Taking Work Home 

The day before leader had coached three Inter- 
mediate girls in making place-cards. They came 
Saturday for the work period, and helped the 
children. Children were wild over “ button 
ones.” (Pattern in The Mayflower Program 
Book.) Impossible to complete more than one 
that period, so each was taught how to transfer 
a pattern, was given a pattern, as many buttons 
as there were members of his family, and 
all necessary materials for making other cards at 
home from his sample. They each took home 
other patterns and cardboard for extra gifts. 
This proved twenty times as valuable as the 


class work where the leader has previously done 
the difficult part, leaving the rest for the children 
to do in the school. 


Home Appreciation and Cooperation 

‘‘ Elinor and Martin worked on place-cards all 
day long. When the family ran out they started 
in on the neighbors. They’re lovely patterns, 
and the children are having such a good time 
making them all themselves.” 

“ John couldn’t wait for Thanksgiving. He 
came right home and made a card, marked it 
‘ Daddy ’ and put it at his father’s place at dinner 
that day.” 

The leader took Anne (quarantined, but not 
ill) some materials and patterns that afternoon, 
and showed her how to make the cards. This 
was appreciated by the entire family, as the older 
sister (aged eleven) seized upon the idea for the 
church fair. All three children made the cards 
for their family Thanksgiving dinner. The 
mother told leader that Anne had learned the 
parts of the service for the next Sunday, though 
she would not be present. She also said that 
Anne and Barbara (younger sister) were to sing 
as grace at their family dinner one of the songs 
learned, — “For this good year of ours.” 


EIGHTH SUNDAY 


November 


No program is given for this Sunday on account 
of the special service already prepared by the 
class. If this takes place in the church, and the 
children remain in the auditorium for the entire 
hour, the church-school session for Primary chil- 
dren may be omitted. 

If the department remains only for the first 
part of the service, however, and is then dis- 
missed for its own session, omit the usual worship 
service and tell a Thanksgiving story. 

In the event of the children’s remaining in the 
church the entire hour, give to the minister a 
story suggestion which he can use for his sermon. 
Plenty will be found in Professor Hartshorne’s 
Manual for Training in Worship, and Stories for 
Worship and How to Use Them, and in Jay S. 
Stowell’s Story-Worship Programs for the Church 
School Year. 

If there is no possibility of having the children’s 
Thanksgiving service in the church, or with their 
older friends in the church school, it may be used 
as a special service in their own department, in 
which mothers and other friends may be asked 
to join. The superintendent or class teacher will 
then tell the story. 

Whenever or wherever this program takes place, 
the children should have an opportunity soon 
after to discuss it, as pointed out in the directions 
for the Thanksgiving worship service given in the 
Sixth Sunday program. 


CHILDREN’S THANKSGIVING SERVICE 
Report of School A . 


Opening Sentence. From Psalm 100. 

(Chosen by children because they knew verses 
from it.) 

Hymn. “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God AI- 
mighty.” ~ 

Invocation and Lord’s Prayer. 

Responsive Reading. From Psalm 136, con- 
gregation responding, “‘ For his loving kindness 
endureth forever.” 

(This response, used in the Primary Depart- 


ment, was so loud and enthusiastic each time 
that the children’s voices drowned out the rest.) 

Gloria. 

Lesson. 
with the minister. 
the platform on each side of the minister. 
recited clearly as the minister read.) 

Children’s Thanksgiving Hymn. 

Prayer, with Children’s Response. “ We 
love thee, heavenly Father.” (During the minis- 
ter’s prayer, which was built around the children’s 
own suggestions, this little response, with its 
original music, came in eight times.) 

Hymn. “ We Plough the Fields and Scatter.” 

Announcements and Offertory. 

Sermon to the Children. “Saying Grace.” 

Hymn. “For the Beauty of the Earth.” 

Benediction. 

Comment: A beautiful little service with no 
exploitation of the children, but natural, child- 
like worship. The class did not enter into the 
preparation of it “ whole-heartedly,” but those 
who were present thoroughly enjoyed the giving 
of it. 


From Psalm 95. Children reading 
(The third grade stood on 
They 


Report of School B 


Our Thanksgiving service was held in our own 
department. Memorized Scripture verses ap- 
propriate for Thanksgiving, and seasonal songs 
which the children had chosen and practised, 
were sung. The class lesson for the day being 
about the building of Solomon’s temple, it fitted 
in beautifully, and the verse, “ Enter into his 


_ gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with 


45 


praise; give thanks unto him, and bless his name,” 
was used in the worship period. 

For the second departmental period the leader 
chose “The Discovery of Happy Valley” as a 
Thanksgiving story. In the part that tells of the 
miners’ voices being heard above the others 
saying, ‘‘ In his hands are the deep places of the 
earth,” and the fishermen’s saying, “‘ The sea is 
his,” the leader read the verse first and had 
the children tell which voices could be heard most 
plainly. 


EIGHTH WEEKDAY 


Preparation for Christmas 


Pictures 


(Have hung near by, pictures of the following 
scenes. The first six are to be found in Primary 
Picture Set No. 2, of the International Graded 
Lessons; the other four in Picture Set No. 3. 
“ Jesus and the Fishermen’; ‘“‘ The Wonderful 
Healer ’’; “‘ Jesus and the Children”; “ Stilling 
the Storm” ; “ Jesus and the Daughter of Jai- 
rus”; ‘‘ The People Thronged Him”; “In the 
Streets of Capernaum’”’; ‘“ The Man with Four 
Friends”; ‘‘ Jesus and the Leper”; ‘Jesus 
Teaching to Pray.”’) 

You like to look at pictures of Jesus, so today 
I have brought almost as many as Miss True 
had that first day the children helped her sort 
them out. Jesus is in every one of these. When 
we look at them we can pretend that we are 
Simon and Andrew and James and John watching 
him. You see that’s the way Jesus’ disciples went 
to school to him, by watching him and listening 
tohim. He taught them as much by doing things 
before them as by talking. Remember how he 
treated the men who wanted to “ tell on” and 
stone the woman who had done wrong? From 
watching him that day, what did they learn? 

Look at the pictures and see what kind of 
things Jesus was doing before his disciples always. 

(Let the children handle and talk about the 
pictures. Tell the stories of those they ask for.) 


Joun: Wasn’t he wonderful? Say, I 
wish I’d known him! 
Story 
“FREELY YE RECEIVED, FREELY GIVE”’ 

Mustn’t it have been wonderful to have been 
among the first four chosen to be his pupils? 
They had a chance to watch him from the first. 
You know he chose other disciples after those 
four on the lake. There were twelve altogether; 
and they went everywhere with him. 

Think what it must have meant to have him 
for a friend. If he was as helpful to strangers as 
these pictures tell us, how much he must have 
done for his disciples, who were his friends! 

APPRECIATIVE COMMENT: Oh my, yes! 


One of the very first things he did was for 
Simon and his wife. Simon’s wife’s mother was 
very sick. They hurried to tell Jesus about it 
and Jesus went straight to his friend’s home and 


46 


cured her. Can’t you imagine how happy they 
all were as they thanked him? 

When you’ve heard something you never knew, 
or had a particularly good time, or seen something 
wonderful, what is the first thing you want to 
do? Tell somebody, isn’t it? 

Well, don’t you think those disciples of Jesus 
must have felt that way at the end of every single 
day? They were getting so much from their 
teacher about how to live and help people, that 
they must have wanted to give their knowledge 
to some one else. They must have longed to try 
to do some of the things they saw Jesus doing. 
Finally, after they had been watching Jesus for 
many months, their chance came. 

Every day for weeks and months the crowds 
thronged about the great Teacher. They came 
from everywhere, and each one wanted help of 
some kind. The stream of sick, unhappy, worried 
men and women and children seemed endless. 
Jesus looked at them and was filled with a great 
pity for them, as he spoke. 

‘You are just like sheep without a shepherd! ”’ 
he said. “‘ If only I could reach every one in the 
world! There are so many who need help and 
so few to give it.” 

But there were his disciples— his special 
pupils, whom for months he had been training to 
do the very things he did. Were they ready by 
now? He called them to him. ‘“ My disciples, 
you have been with me a long while now. Go 
out among the cities and villages, and do for 
others what you have seen me do. Never be 
afraid that a task will be too hard. It is my 
Father who helps me. He will help you. Tell 
people what I have told you about our Father. 
Tell them to be sorry if they have done wrong, 
and show them what is right. You know, for I 
have shown you. Tell them that it is only by 
doing right that they can be happy; you know 
that, for you have learned it yourselves. 

‘* Wherever help is needed, give it, remembering 
me. It may be only a cup of cold water to a 
thirsty child; it may be cheerful, comforting 
words to the sad; it may be healing for the sick. 
Wherever you go, help; you will know how, for 
I have taught you. Every kind of help you have 
received from me, give to others. Freely ye 
received, freely give.” 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 47 


Do you suppose there was one disciple among 
them who wasn’t eager to start out at once? 
They had watched hundreds of faces light up 
because Jesus helped them. They wanted to 
make sad faces light up. 

Simon remembered how happy Jesus had made 
him and his wife when her mother had been made 
well. He wanted to make people glad like that. 
Probably all the twelve were in a hurry to be 
off, but I think Simon was the most impatient of 
all. Jesus had changed his name to Peter. Peter 
meant “rock,” and Peter was anxious to show 
that he could be depended upon like a rock. He 
had received so much from Jesus; now he wanted 
to give it to others. 

Joun: I bet they did it, too. 

And so the disciples started off two by two to 
cheer the lonely, to heal the sick, to tell sad 
people about Jesus who had sent his pupils to 
them, and their heavenly Father who loved them. 
And everywhere they went the message of Jesus 
sang itself in their hearts and urged them on: 
‘“ Freely ye received, freely give.” 

Nore To Leavers: (It may be well to end here, 
and tell the rest of the story at another time.) 

The reason I told you that story today is be- 
cause of something that happened in Happy 
Valley after the children in Miss True’s school 
knew it. This was some time after the people 
had had their service out-of-doors and thanked 
God for all his goodness to them. The church 
had been built now, and Miss True’s school was 
well started. 

The children liked the message Jesus had given 
his disciples, especially after they had found a 
little tune to it in a song-book. They liked to 
sing it. It sounded like this: “ Freely ye re- 
ceived, freely give.” (Songs for Little People.) 

Robert could print, and wanted to put it on 
the blackboard. Miss True said of course he 
could, and gave him some colored chalk to make 
the letters prettier. When it was done the child- 
ren were so delighted with it that they decided 
to take it out on the lawn where everybody pass- 
ing could see it. 

You never could believe the effect it had. It 
really started the first Christmas celebration in 
Happy Valley. 

It happened about harvest time. All the 
farmers were bringing in great loads from the 
fields, and as they passed the church and read the 
sign, you could see them stroke their beards 


thoughtfully as if a new idea had struck them. 
The miners and quarrymen read the sign, and 
thought of the treasure they were digging every 
day out of the mountain. The dairymen thought 
of the grass their cattle ate, and of the rain which 
came down so freely from heaven to water their 
herds. George Kling’s mother thought of 
George’s new clothes. 

All the people in Happy Valley who read 
Robert’s printed sign admitted that they had 
indeed been receiving freely ever since they had 
come to Happy Valley. But they took the whole 
verse in earnest: Freely ye received, freely give. 
And they suddenly felt that Thanksgiving and 
praise services weren’t enough; that there was 
giving to be done as well as receiving and saying, 
“Thank you.” And every single one looked 
about for some one to give to. 

Shouldn’t you feel queer to live in a town where 
there was nobody who really needed your gifts? 
But that was the difficulty before the Happy 
Valley people. Everybody had enough. There 
was much more than they needed. They all 
knew plenty of people outside of Happy Valley 
who needed gifts, but up to now everybody had 
worked so hard to build up Happy Valley that 
the people outside, who were not so fortunate as 
they were, had been completely forgotten. Now 
they remembered, when they wanted to give and 
had no one to receive the gifts. 

‘“ Why don’t we send some of our harvest out? ” 
some one asked. 

“ Back to our neighbors who couldn’t come to 
Happy Valley,” another chimed in. 

‘“ It would take a long time to get it to them,” 
a third said doubtfully. 

The crowd began to break up into little groups, 
all talking together. It was plain that every- 
body was in favor of sharing the gifts they had 
received in Happy Valley with their old neigh- 
bors outside. The question was how to reach 
them, for so far there were no trains in and out of 
the valley. Everybody had arrived by wagons or 
automobiles and the household goods had come 
by truck. 

Then a man’s voice could be heard above the 
rest. It was Freddie Thorpe’s father speaking. 

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he shouted, so that 
all could hear, “last night my wife and I were 
talking about Christmas.” The others nodded; 
Christmas was only a few weeks away. Evi- 
dently other people had been talking about it, 


48 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


too. “And we were wondering,’ Mr. Thorpe 
went on, “ how we were going to get presents for 
our children and for each other. Even if we 
make them ourselves we need materials which 
have to be bought in stores.” 

There was a nodding of heads and a murmur of 
‘“‘'That’s so,” in the crowd. You see there were 
no stores yet in Happy Valley. It had often 
been very inconvenient. The people had fre- 
quently found themselves wanting certain things 
very badly, things which didn’t grow in the 
ground, or on trees, or in the river. 

“TI was going to suggest that we start a store,” 
continued Mr. Thorpe. ‘‘ A number of us would 
take trucks from the valley, go back to our old 
homes and buy whatever is needed to stock a 
store, especially at Christmas time.” 

“Hooray!” shouted the crowd, “ but what’s 
the matter with sending the trucks out full in- 
stead of empty?” 

“That’s what I was thinking,” Mr. Thorpe 
answered. ‘‘ Who will go?”’ 
“Twill!” “So will I!” 

from all directions. 

‘‘ What shall we share with our old neighbors? ”’ 

** Fruit,” said one. 

‘“‘ Vegetables,’ said another. 

“ Grain,” “ Coal,” “‘ Wood,” cried others. 


“‘ Christmas trees! ”’ shouted a little boy at the 
edge of the crowd. And everybody loudly ap- 
proved of that. Many remembered how hard it 
had been back in the cities to get Christmas 
trees; and here the mountains were covered with 
them. 


The next day there was a parade half a mile 
long, a parade of loaded trucks being driven 
through the town and out of the valley. 

Miss True’s children came out of their school 
to wave and shout as the procession passed. 
But the most thrilling part of it all—to the 
children — came when one of the drivers leaned 
out, and pointed to Robert’s sign. 

“That was what started us, you know,” he 
called, and the drivers who came after grinned 
with delight to see how excited the children were. 


‘* Send me!” came 


School A. Did not use the story at 
all. Discussing last Sunday’s service and 
planning ahead for Christmas, also making 
some rules for ourselves, took all the time. 


Discussion of Thanksgiving Service 


(If there has been no chance yet to discuss the 
Thanksgiving service, let the discussion take 
place now.) 


School A. The main criticism was 
“not enough came.” (The first blizzard 
of the year kept half the number away.) 
On the whole it was “ pretty good.” The 
report on the Christmas program of this 
school, page 73, shows how the children 
improved in their ability to criticize their 
own projects. 


Plans for Christmas Program 


What could this class plan for the pleasure of 
the rest of the department, or the whole church 
school, or a near-by institution? Another serv- 
ice? What should be in it? Carols? What 
carols? (Try some.) The Christmas stories? 
Which ones? Tableaux illustrating either the 
songs or stories or both? (Read over the story 
of the shepherds, Luke 2 : 8-20; the Wise-men, 
Matt. 2:1-12, for possibilities. Show pictures 
illustrating events connected with the birth of 
Jesus. 

(Plan to ask the whole department to help in 
the preparation of the music of the program de- 
cided upon. Practise “O Little Town of Beth- 
lehem,” if the children know it, and one or two 
other carols.) 

Christmas Work 

(Start the Christmas work today. The depart- 
ment as a whole will probably contribute to some 
outside interest, such as the Armenians or a mis- 
sion school. ‘Therefore, since home relationship 
will be emphasized for the next few weeks, it is 
suggested that the gifts made in this class be 
made first for members of the family, then for 
those helpers who come in contact with their 
homes, such as the postman and the milkman. 
Where families are large, children with fewer 
members to provide for may help out. 

(These gifts need not be elaborate. The baker 
and postman will be pleased at the very thought 
of being remembered. Pretty cards can be made 
by exposing a Christmas tree stencil design, for 
instance, on blue-print paper. But whatever is 
attempted, from Christmas tree ornaments for 
the family tree,—see The Mayflower Program 
Books for patterns —to wooden toys, several 
assistants will be necessary for each of the weeks 
before the holiday season. Each child’s work 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 49 


needs almost constant, though not necessarily 
expert, supervision. Camp Fire girls, High 
School students and members of organized classes 
in the Intermediate Department, make good 
assistants for any ordinary ‘activities. 

(Before attempting to help the children, how- 
ever, each assistant should first have made, from 
start to finish, whatever articles will be under- 
taken. For toy-making some one more expert 
who can teach the use of the hand-saw will be 
needed, but the assistants will learn this readily 
and be able to help the children after one lesson 
and a little practise.) 


Report of School A 
Christmas Program Making 

Leader read the Christmas stories from Luke 
and Matthew, and the class recalled songs for 
each, learned last year. Sang over “O Little 
Town of Bethlehem” and “ Holy Night,” while 
leader showed all the Christmas pictures. 

We talked about a Christmas program for the 
department, and discussed ways of making the 
Christmas story real to the others. Anne’s re- 
mark, ‘‘ We could look at the pictures and try 
to do what they’re doing in them,” suggested 
tableaux, and the children tried the scene of the 
shepherds with Mary and Joseph. 


Joun: I wish I’d live then and could have gone. 
Leaver: I know a poem like that, — it begins, 
“Tf I had been a shepherd boy 
Out on the hills that Christmas night.’ 
(Leader read first stanza of poem given in 
Tenth Sunday program.) 


Christmas Work 


We had a new carpenter’s bench, low, and large 
enough for six or seven to work about at once, 


sheets of Upson board and patterns. Borrowed 
from the Vacation Church School supplies both 
coping saws and the head of the school to show 
us how to use them! “ Fighting bears” toy for 
younger brothers and tie-racks for fathers proved 
most popular. 

Criticism: Leader showed too many patterns 
at once. Children chose the hardest and were 
consequently easily discouraged. Should have 
started with something which could have been 
completed in one session. 


Use of Self-Control 

During the work period leader found Lawrence 
and John in heated argument, four fists being 
freely used. 

LEADER: Boys, I don’t know who started this, 
and I don’t want to know. But — 

Joun: I started it. 

Lawrence: And I’m going to quit right now. 


Belief in Santa Claus 

Stuart (on the way home): Well, I’ve written 
a letter to Santa Claus already. The boys up my 
way say there isn’t any Santa Claus, but I tell 
em there is, and so I wrote a letter, and told him 
everything I want. 

Leaver: How did you know how to address it? 

Sruart: Well, my father said if I sent it in 
care of the post-office it would reach him all 
right, so I did. 

(See Stuart’s remark at end of Tenth Weekday 
program.) 

Report of School B 

Decided to plan a Christmas program to be 
given for the other third-grade classes in the 
department. 


NINTH SUNDAY 


November — December 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Find out what Christmas songs the children 
are learning in day school which could be used in 
the department. Or there may be a special carol 
the department would like which might be 
learned in school at the suggestion of the leader 
to the music supervisor, who will by now have a 
personal interest in the class. 


School A. This cooperation meant 
better singing in our worship services, as 
well as an opportunity for appreciation in 
Sunday sessions of carols taught in day 
school. 


. 


(Use this period for an ‘ appreciation lesson ”’ 
on one of the carols to be learned, preferably 
“O Little Town of Bethlehem.” This does not 
tell the Christmas story, but gives the setting. 

(Picture first a world full of unhappy people 
making mistakes, needing some one to save them 
from getting worse and to show them the way to 
make a happy world.) 

Unless you were rich and strong and powerful 
at this time, there seemed to be no place for you. 
If you were weak or sick or helpless you might 
as well have died; there were no such things as 
hospitals or the kind of doctors and nurses we 
know; no such things as homes where, if you were 
left alone in the world, you could be taken care 
of and treated kindly. 


All the people seemed to be trying to get ahead 
of the rest, and whatever stood in their way they 
would destroy, fighting and killing as it pleased 
them. When some were unkind and cruel, 
others became even more unkind and cruel, “ to 
get even.” And so it went on, until it was a 
world full of unkind, quarrelsome people. There 
was no such thing as peace. 


The wiser among them knew that this couldn’t 
go on. Some one must come soon who would 
show them another way to live. They felt as if 
the world was quite dark, and that they were 
groping around trying to find the way, but there 
was no light. They hoped—oh, how they 
hoped! — that God would send some one to save 
them all from making so many mistakes. He 


50 


would be like a light to lighten the darkness. 
The cruel, selfish ones were afraid of such a 
Saviour. 

But one night God answered the hopes of the 
wise ones. In the little town of Bethlehem was 
born a baby. The baby was the Christ Jesus, 
God’s very own Son who was to show the world 
the way to live. 

(Show a picture of Bethlehem. One will be 
found in Primary Picture Set No. 2, Interna- 
tional Graded Lessons.) 

Here is a picture of Bethlehem. See how close 
together the buildings are crowded. That means 
that the streets must be narrow and dark. 

Once a great preacher visited Bethlehem. His 
name was Phillips Brooks. He saw how narrow 
and dark the streets were. At night there were 
no lamps to light them. He thought of that 
night years and years and years before when God 
sent his Son into the world —into this very 
town — and he wrote a song about it. This is 
the song: 

(Sing, or have your assistants or a singer from 
another department sing softly and distinctly 
two verses of ‘‘O Little Town of Bethlehem,” 
while you hold the picture before the children.) 


School A. Teachers and one child 
who knew the first stanza sang this. 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Keeping to the Familiar 

(Continuing the thought of the worship period, 
have several copies of Worship and Song or some 
other hymnal containing song just sung, on the 
class table. 

(Pass the picture of Bethlehem around so the 
children may examine it more closely; ask if they 
would like to read the rest of the hymn, “ O Little 
Town of Bethlehem.” 

(Continue the appreciation of the poem by 
speaking of a world of people today who either 
have not heard, or have forgotten and need to 
hear again, that Jesus was born. For when 
Jesus was born love came with him, and every- 
body knows that people are happier and kinder 
where love is than where quarreling and hatred 
are.) 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 51 


School A. Leader spoke of how the 
telling of the story of Jesus’ coming always 
seems to make people happier, whether 
told in song, story, or pictures. We talked 
a moment about the possibility of taking 
our Christmas service to shut-ins or an 
institution. 

(Read the third stanza together; then the 
fourth. Ask what the song refers to by “ We 
hear the Christmas angels.” This brings us to 
the angels’ song that first Christmas night. 
Point to the pictures used in the last weekday 
session. Read again together the shepherd story 
from the Bibles.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Christmas means to many children simply the 
getting of presents. Tell in this period “ The 
Great Walled Country,” from Why the Chimes 
Rang, by Raymond MacDonald Alden, or The 
Second Year Mayflower Program Book, by Perkins 
and Danielson.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Expression and Investigation. (Retelling 
the Christmas story from the point of view of the 
shepherds, have a dramatization or impersonation. 
One or more pretend to be shepherds who jour- 
neyed to the manger. The rest are strange shep- 
herds or friends from another place, who are 
listening to the story of that Christmas night for 
the first time. The tale may be told by one, or, 
as would be more natural, by several, interrupt- 
ing each other in their eagerness to tell what they 
heard and saw and felt. 

(If the children find they do not know the story 
well enough yet, send them to their Bibles again. 

(If the leader can sing, or if it is possible to 
commandeer the services of the one who sang 
“ O Little Town of Bethlehem,” let the shepherd 
story be told now in song, as a surprise. If the 
group has a separate class room, let the singer, 
dressed as a shepherd, appear and sing the story. 
If this would interfere with other classes, lead the 
third grade into the hall or some other part of 
the church where the “shepherd” can sing to 
them. The alternative would be for the song to 
be sung quietly in the class. The singer will be 
doing exactly what the children have been doing 
— impersonating the shepherds —if the Shep- 


herd’s Carol is used: “ Hearken, ye Children, 
while Shepherds of Bethlehem Sing,” from 
Worship and Song.) 


Report of School A 


The Christmas Impersonation 


Half the class were Bethlehem shepherds, the 
other half strangers. Strangers and Bethlehem 
shepherds greeted each other. Their conversa- 
tion was as follows: 

STRANGERS: Is there any news? 

SHEPHERDS: Yes, a baby was born. 

STRANGERS: Babies are born all the time. 

SHEPHERDS: But this was a king! 

STRANGERS: How did you know? 

SHEPHERDS: The angels told us. 

STRANGERS: What did you do? 

SHEPHERDS: We went to see him. 

STRANGERS: What did you do with your sheep? 

SHEPHERDS: We took the littlest lamb and left 
the rest with one shepherd. . 

STRANGERS: How did you know where to find 
the baby? 

SHEPHERDS: There was a star. 

Here we stopped to look up the account in 
Luke. Was there any star in that story? No. 
We then looked up the story of the Wise-men, and 
found it. Leader said she knew a song that 
sounded like what we had been doing; started to 
sing softly, “‘ Hearken, ye children,” but as the 
children all had books and caught the tune very 
quickly, it ended in all singing it — except John, 
who still doesn’t “‘ like that stuff.” 

Anne (at the close): I love that! 

Failure to Make Christianity Function 

In changing from class to departmental period, 
James had accidentally pulled away a chair in 
which Tommy was about to sit. 

Assistant (after Sunday school): You’ve got 
to write another story. 

LEADER: Why? 

AssIsTANT: For Tommy. 

Leaver: Didn’t he like “‘ The Great Walled 
Country? ” 

Assistant: I wasn’t watching him then, but 
I was just now. He had James on his back on 
the ground, and while two other boys were pin- 
ning him down, Tommy gave James the pummel- 
ing of his life. That ought not to happen, you 
know — not on the church grounds — not right 
after Sunday school. 

LEADER (meekly): No, it really oughtn’t. 


A MOTHERS’ MEETING 


A mother’s meeting should be planned for some 
afternoon in the early part of December. 

If there is any plan on foot for a Christmas play 
or pantomime, or for tableaux, the making of 
costumes will be necessary, and the mothers will 
probably be glad to come together both to sew 
and to talk. 

By now the leader will know her group fairly 
well. The mothers will have confidénce in her 
and faith in her undertaking. A sympathetic 
interchange of problems and methods of dealing 
with them will be mutually helpful and en- 
lightening. 

This is an excellent chance to introduce to 
mothers, who may not know of any, books or 
articles which deal with these problems. The 
leader could have a loan collection from the 
library of books on child psychology, stories for 
children, etc. Her own library will add materially 
to this. 

About this time with these eight-year-old chil- 
dren the question of whether or not there is a 
Santa Claus is causing anxiety. A story which 
could be told to pass on is, ‘‘ The Child Who Saw 
Santa Claus,” from Tell Me Another Story, by 
Carolyn 8. Bailey. 

This is a busy month for mothers. A Primary 
superintendent who is also a mother told what a 
terrible month it promised to be for her. She 
was madly rushing from one unfinished gift to 
another, putting off her little girl when she begged 
for a story, getting more tired and irritated and 
hectic each day, when, as she expressed it, her 
child brought her to her senses. After watching 
her mother plunge from one absorption to another 
— articles for the church fair, unfinished Christ- 
mas presents, committees, — “‘ Seems to me,” she 
plaintively observed, ‘‘ you have time for every- 
thing but me.”’ Her mother looked at her, then 
swept everything — all the Christmas gifts, all 
the articles for the bazaar in their various stages 
of incompleteness, into a bureau drawer. From 
that moment she devoted herself to the task of 
bringing Christmas to her child. She spent hours 
with her, reading and telling her all the Christ- 
mas stories she could find, shopping with her for 
materials, helping her fashion her own little gifts. 
Friends might be surprised, grieved, at her 
neglect, the bazaar committee might be disap- 
pointed or wrathy, but her child had the most 


wonderful Christmas of her short life. Isn’t this 
mother’s experience worth passing on? 

Mothers may be at a loss as to where to find 
Christmas stories to tell and read to their chil- 
dren. Be ready to lend your own books, or 
direct them to stories elsewhere. 

This is a rare opportunity to give the mothers 
an idea of what is planned in the course for 
December; to give them a hint as to what actions 
and reactions to expect in their children, and to 
solicit their help in encouraging the children in 
worthy, if sometimes troublesome, attempts to 
save their time. On the Ninth Weekday a story 
will be told of some Happy Valley children who 
gave their mother a Christmas present of time 
saved by their thoughtfulness and helpfulness. 
This may lead to the group’s wishing to do the 
same thing. The idea will be made attractive 
by the presence of a. pile of pasteboard disks 
marked like money, and boxes with slits in the 
covers. The children will like to take them 
home, keeping them a secret from theiir mother, 
and whenever one has a chance to do something 
which will save time for her—two minutes, 
fifteen, half-an-hour —he may put in the box 
the corresponding amount of “money.” At 
each meeting the “ time saved’ can be counted, 
and at Christmas, the bank, with a little explana- 
tory rhyme attached, may be given to the mother 
as a gift. 

Most of this is supposed to be a secret between 
the leader and the children, and the leader must 
not give the secret away. But the scheme will 
be much more successful if she can drop a hint to 
the mothers at this time to the effect that after 
the next session the children may seem a little 
more anxious to relieve them than usual, and that 
if they will encourage their children’s desire to 
save them time, they will be helping in the 
scheme. Of course they should not be told 
about the Christmas gift at the end, and the 
children need not know that the mothers have 


been prepared at all. But it will certainly help— 


the mothers to understand when the children 
become suddenly almost too officious in their de- 
sire to help; and it will encourage the children if 
their mothers would occasionally say, ‘‘ Susie, it 
would save me lots of time if you would wash the 
dishes for me,” or, ‘‘ John, run down to the 
grocer’s for me before school, will you? I’ve a 


J 


Ee 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 53 


great deal to do this morning, and that will save 
me a good half-hour.” Or even, “ You know, 
you could save me ten or fifteen minutes every 
night, Sammy, if you’d to go bed the minute I 
reminded you.” Designating the amount of time 
saved will remind them of their bank and their 
desire to fill it. This will be a sort of game all 
through December, and it may start a habit. 


Report of School A 


Mothers were glad to come together to make 
costumes and talk. 

Leader showed them a set of beautiful large 
photographs of Palestine scenes, Bethlehem hills, 
and shepherds watching their flocks by night, 
from four of which the children were to make 
their tableaux. They were most appreciative, 
and much interested in the description of the im- 
personations of six angels, four shepherds, three 
Wise-men, Joseph and Mary. They wanted to 
know just what Bible passages, poetry and carols 
were to be learned and promised to help the 
children with them. 

They welcomed the current numbers of The 
Pilgrim Elementary Teacher as well as others con- 
taining stories and patterns for Christmas. 
There was no great craving for books on child 
psychology apparent and the leader didn’t men- 
tion them. All the children in the class, it de- 
veloped, still believed in Santa Claus. Leader 
read the article on Santa Claus in The Book of 
Knowledge, and asked if they minded her dealing 


with the subject that way. They were all per- 
fectly willing, and gladly took the hint about 
their children’s excessive helpfulness. 

Leaver: I can’t thank you enough for helping 
me with this. I never got so much work done so 
easily. 

A Moruer: Who should do it if not the 
mothers? 

AwnoTHeR Mortuer: I just couldn’t get Law- 
rence to go to Sunday school. Now I can’t keep 
him away — Sunday or Saturday. More than 
that, he doesn’t see why his whole grade in school 
shouldn’t go, too. He invited three boys last 
Saturday to go to the class and I had to telephone 
the mother not to let them go, or you’d be 
swamped. 

(This desire of Lawrence’s to share his good 
times in the class led to the party given in Feb- 
ruary for the entire third grade, toward which 
the class worked for weeks.) 

LEADER (as the mothers left carrying packages of 
unfinished costumes): I shall know where to turn’ 
the next time I want some work done! 

A Moruer: We’re glad to help any time. We 
certainly appreciate what you're doing for our 
children. 

(Reports through the year show how the leader 
kept in personal touch with the mothers as far 
as possible, though holding no more mothers’ 
meetings. She found the “sympathetic inter- 
change of problems” much easier and more 
natural this way.) 


NINTH WEEKDAY 


Christmas Surprises 


Story 
Mrs. Farrcuitp’s CHristMAS PRESENT 


The Fairchild children were perfectly sure that 
they had the nicest mother in Happy Valley. 
She was pretty and young, and made cookies cut 
in the shape of rabbits and puppies, and she was 
just as much fun to play with as another boy or 
girl; that is, when she did play. 

For some reason or other she didn’t do it as 
much as she used to. They were talking it over 
one day and Robert (he was called Bob at home) 
and Dorothy remembered when she used to spend 
any amount of time playing with them and tell- 
ing them stories. That was before the other 


children, David and baby Frances, had come. 

“‘ She used to make up stories for us,” Dorothy 
reminded Bob. ‘‘ Remember? ” 

“T know it,’ answered Bob. ‘“‘ Now she 
always reads them to us out of a book. They’re 
not half so good.” 

‘‘Why doesn’t she make them up any more?” 
asked David. He felt as if he had been rather 
cheated, coming along after Bob and Dorothy. 

“T don’t know,” said the others. ‘ Let’s ask 
her.” 

So the three children hunted up their mother. 
They found her puckering up her pretty white 
forehead over a note-book. 

““Why don’t you make up stories for us any 
more, mother? ” they clamored. 

‘Fairy stories like the ones you used to write 
for me,” said Dorothy. 

“True stories that really happened,” said Bob. 

“A story about Santa Claus,” piped up David. 
You could tell by his suggestion that Christmas 
wasn’t very far off. 

“Mrs. Fairchild hugged all three of them. 

“Don’t I wish I could!” she said, her eyes 
sparkling at the thought. ‘‘ You see, I used to 
have more time to do it when there were just two 
of you and you were little. I'd write them when 
you were taking your naps. Then your supper 
and bedtime were so early I could write again in 
the evening. Now I have such a nice big family 
they keep me busy doing other things. When the 
baby’s asleep there’s always sewing and mending 
to be done, and after supper — well, you know 
how much evening there is left when you are all 
finally in bed!” 


54 


The children looked thoughtful. They liked 
to take a long time getting to bed, putting off 
starting as long as possible and then undressing 
as slowly as possible. 


School A. This struck home. 
CHILDREN (murmuring): That’s like me. 
I do that, too. 


“Why,” Mrs. Fairchild said, taking up the 
little note-book she had been studying, “I was 
just wondering how I should even be able to get 
ready for Christmas. I have no end of nice 
ideas for you children and daddy. I keep put- 
ting them down in this book. But when am I 
ever going to find time to work on them? ”’ 

This was serious. It was bad enough to have 
her so busy that she couldn’t make up stories for 
them any more, but to have no time to get ready 
for Christmas! Why, how could they have 
Christmas at their house if their mother was too 
busy to bring it? 

“Oh, dear!’ cried Dorothy in alarm. 

‘““There’s got to be time for Christmas,” said 
Bob, wide-eyed at the awful possibility. 

‘‘ What is it that takes so much time, mother? ” 
Dorothy asked, hoping that something could be 
left out. 

‘Oh, little things,’ Mrs. Fairchild answered, 
* like ” she stopped to listen. A knock 
sounded on the kitchen door. ‘‘ Like answering 
knocks and door-bells,” she finished, laughing, 
and ran downstairs. 

The children leaned out of the window to see 
who it was. It happened to be a delivery boy. 

“One of us could have done that for her,” re- 
marked Dorothy. 

“It wouldn’t have saved her so very much 
time,” said Bob. 

“No, but if we did it often enough it would,” 
was the answer. ‘And we've just got to do 
something.” 

Everybody agreed that something had to be 
done. What was the good of having the nicest 
mother in town, one who had a whole book full 
of ideas, if she didn’t have time to carry any of 
them out? They sat down to talk it over. 

‘We don’t ever go to bed when she tells us,” 
said Bob guiltily. ‘‘ She has to wait around for 
us forever sometimes.” 

“And the other day,” said Dorothy, “she 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 55 


said I was big enough now to set the table and to 
keep the saltcellars and sugar bowl filled. And I 
only did it once.” 

“Every time I get out my Mechano things,” 
put in David, “ mother has to put them back. I 
always think I’m going to, and then by the time 
I'm ready to she’s already done it.” 

‘Two mornings when it’s snowed she’s asked 
me to sweep off the steps,’ said Bob, “but I 
didn’t get dressed in time to do it before school. 
And when I came back at noon they were all 
swept off.” 

“ All those things in her book,” said Dorothy, 
“ were for daddy and us. We don’t think of her 
at all. I don’t even know what to give her for 
Christmas.” 

“Me either,” admitted Bob. 

“ Me either,” echoed David. 

“T guess she’d rather have a Christmas present 
of some time than anything else,” ventured 
Dorothy. 

‘“T know, let’s give it to her!’ exclaimed Bob, 
jumping up. 

“Time!” repeated Dorothy. ‘You can’t 
very well do time up in a package and tie it on a 
Christmas tree! ”’ 

“Yes, we can. We can write down when 
we've saved her time by doing extra things for 
her, and give her the papers.” 

‘“ But Dorothy suddenly had a better idea than 
that. You never saw three more excited child- 
ren. They all ran downstairs humming the tune 
to the little verse Bob had printed on the school 
blackboard, ‘‘ Freely ye received, freely give.” 

That night when Mrs. Fairchild said, “ Come, 
children, it’s time to go to bed,” the children 
jumped as if they had been shot. Not one of 
them said, “O mother! I’m just in the middle 
of this story.” Not one of them, “ Oh, please, 
can’t I stay up longer tonight?” Not one of 
them even hesitated. Up the stairs they raced 
so fast that Mr. Fairchild said, “ What’s up?” 
and Mrs. Fairchild rubbed her eyes to see if she 
was dreaming. From the rushings and _scuf- 
flings and whisperings and suppressed giggles up- 
stairs you could tell that something was up. It 
didn’t seem more than two minutes before they 
were all downstairs in their pajamas to kiss their 
father and mother, and then upstairs again and 
quiet. 

“Well, I never!’ exclaimed Mr. Fairchild. 

“Neither did I— ever!” confessed his wife. 


“It’s too good to be true. Only a quarter to 
eight and a whole evening before me! I could 
start dressing that doll for Dorothy, or making 
the baseball suit for Bob, or the sweater for: 
David. Why, I have so much time I don’t 
know what to do!” 

Next morning Dorothy woke up humming to 
herself, “ Freely ye received, freely give.” Bob 
and David caught it and it ran in their heads all 
day. It was Saturday, Mrs. Fairchild’s busiest 
day, but things seemed to get done by magic 
today, somehow. The children were on time for 
every single meal. Dorothy filled the saltcellars 
and sugar bowl without being told, set the table 
three times and insisted on helping her mother 
with the dishes. Robert swept the piazza and 
the walk, and came back from errands so quickly 
that his mother couldn’t believe he had gone. 
David picked up the play-room and amused the 
baby. And by the time two o’clock came, and 
Dorothy said, ‘‘ Mother, may we take Frances 
out in her carriage? ” Mrs. Fairchild found to her 
surprise that her Saturday work was done. 

‘I do believe nobody has as helpful children 
as I have,” she said to herself. “ Why, here I 
am with a whole half day to get ready for Christ- 
mas. I ought to do something special for them. 
I wonder—” and now Mrs. Fairchild had a 
bright idea. “Oh, that would be a surprise! ” 
she told herself excitedly. But would there be 
time with all she had to do? She could 
try. 

She went upstairs to her desk, and she was so 
deep in what she was doing that she never even 
heard when the children came in. 

They hung their coats and hats on their hooks. 
Usually they left them for their mother to hang. 


School A. Struck home again! 


They brought in Frances’ carriage, and took 
her with them up to the play-room. Here David 
played with her while Bob and Dorothy found 
pencils and paper and sat down. 

“ Oh, isn’t this fun? ” Dorothy chuckled, as she 
put down the amount of time she had saved her 
mother that day: 

Setting the table for breakfast, five minutes 

Clearing the table, ten minutes 

Wiping the dishes and putting away, twenty 
minutes 

“Twenty and ten makes thirty, thirty and five 
makes thirty-five— why, just think, Bob, I 


56 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


gave her thirty-five minutes just with breakfast 
things!” 

‘“That’s nothing,’ answered Bob, “I gave her 
more’n that sweeping that walk and doing those 
errands. And say, don’t forget to put what we 
saved last night going right to bed when she 
told us.” 

“'That’s so,” Dorothy nodded delightedly. 
“How much do you think it was? ”’ 

“‘T bet it was a good half-hour,” guessed Bob. 
“‘ Sometimes it’s nine o’clock before we really get 
tucked in. It was only a quarter to eight last 
night.” 

“‘Let’s put down a whole hour, and let’s do it 
every night. A whole hour every single night 
will count up like everything.” 

‘‘Shows how much she’s been giving us,” 
observed Bob. “It’s about time we gave some 
of it back to her.” 

“Tt’s just like our song again, isn’t it?” said 
Dorothy, starting David’s list, for he could not 
write. ‘‘ Freely ye received, freely give,” she 
sang. ‘‘Oh, I like to freely give some time to 
my mother,” she added. 


Mrs. Fairchild awoke on the day before Christ- 
mas wondering if she could ever in the world do 
all the things which had to be done that day. 
There were all the packages to be tied up and 
'- marked, finishing touches to be put on several 
presents, and the Christmas tree to be trimmed. 
It always took a long time to trim the Christmas 
tree, but she felt as if this year it must be more 
beautiful than ever for the children. They had 
been so sweet and helpful lately, she wanted to 
show them how she appreciated it. Why, she 
thought, it was as if, whenever she had a par- 
ticularly busy day ahead of her, a host of little 
brownies had suddenly stepped in and taken the 
work right out of her hands. Yes, the tree must 
be prettier than ever this year. She usually 
trimmed it after the children had gone to bed. 
But there was a special reason why she wanted 
those hours free tonight. One more evening and 
she knew she could finish her crowning Christmas 
surprise, the gift she was counting on more than 
any other to delight her little brownie helpers. 
She must have the whole evening to herself. 

If Mrs. Fairchild was anxious about that tree, 
her children were even more anxious. They had 
plans of their own. Would they be allowed to 
carry them out? They never had done such a 


thing, they knew, but it just had to be this Christ- 
mas. And so, after working the whole morning 
shut up in their play-room, while their mother 
was tying up presents and doing other last things, 
they decided that the time had come to ask her. 
“Mother,” they began, “please, please, say 
yes when we ask you what we’re going to.” 
They sounded so earnest, and they looked so 


eager! Mrs. Fairchild wondered what it could 


be to make them so serious. 

‘Please, mother,” they teased, “just this 
once! ”’ 

What could it be? They had been so good 
and helpful for so long, Mrs. Fairchild hated to 
refuse them anything. But suppose what they 
wanted meant work for her when already she was 
so rushed? There was the tree to trim and — 

“ Please, mother,” they begged again, Dorothy 
jumping up and down with red spots on her 
cheeks, she was so eager. 

“You dear children,’ said Mrs. Fairchild, 
“you may do anything that is reason- 
able.” 

‘‘O mother, thank you!” they cried. ‘“ We 
want to trim the Christmas tree this year.” 

Now how do you suppose Mrs. Fairchild felt? 


Cuitp: Bet she was glad! 


Here they were clamoring to do the very thing 
she was trying to find time for! The Christmas 
tree, as a rule, was kept as a surprise, to burst 
upon the children in all its sparkling glory on 
Christmas morning. But if they liked it better 
this way, why shouldn’t they have what they 
wanted? 

And that is why, when the door was opened 
next morning, it was Mrs. Fairchild who was the 
one to be surprised instead of the children. They 
had taken their father into their secret and he 
had promised to tie their mother’s gifts on the 
tree for her, as well as his own, so that she should 
not even have a glimpse of the decorations until 
Christmas morning. . 

I wish you could have seen that tree! Besides 
all the strings of tinsel and the usual decorations, 
gold stars glistened among the branches, little 
silver disks hung from the twigs on trembling 
threads, while everywhere, all over the tree, 
twinkled small white diamonds and squares. 

Mrs. Fairchild hadn’t the least idea what they 
were, but as she stood in the doorway she thought 


a 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 57 


she had never seen so pretty a tree in her life. 
At the top was a Christmas angel, and just under- 
neath it was what looked like a fat red Santa 
Claus. Only his thickness did not come from 
cloth stuffing. No, indeed, it was much more 
mysterious than that. The children spotted it 
at once. Their father had put it there very late 
the night before. They were so curious about it 
they almost forgot to look at their mother’s face. 
But she was so long admiring the beautiful tree, 
that the children and their father, laughing, had 
to draw her toward it. 

“Td advise you to look at some of those deco- 
rations, my dear,” Mr. Fairchild told his wife. 
“You'll find it worth your while.” 

The first thing Mrs. Fairchild looked at was 
one of the gold stars. There was some writing 
on it. 

“With love to mother from Bob,” it said, 
“1 Hour (cleaning the cellar.)” 

“ Why, what? ’” — began Mrs. Fairchild. Her 
eye fell on two quivering disks hanging on slender 
threads before her. 

One read, ‘‘ 4 Hour to Mother from David. 
(Playing with Frances.)”’ 

The other said, ‘Mother from Dorothy. 
Y Hour. (Making beds and dusting.)” 

The children’s eyes were fairly dancing to see 
their mother’s face. | 

“The stars are hours,” they explained glee- 
fully — they couldn’t wait for her to puzzle it out 
for herself —” and the silver circles are half- 
hours, and the white snowflakes are all minutes.” 
Sure enough, the twinkling little white papers had 
figures on them, 5, 10, 15, 20. 

“ They’re from all of us, you see,” Dorothy told 
her. “It’s time we saved you by picking up, 
and being on time for meals, and going to bed and 
everything.” 

“ T should think it was everything,” gasped Mrs. 
Fairchild. ‘‘ Why, my darlings, how can I ever 
thank you?” But they were not a bit worried 
about that. Just to see their mother finger each 
one of their Christmas tree decorations and to 
watch her face as she read what was on them was 
enough. 

The floor underneath the tree was covered with 
presents for them. They wanted to open them 
all at once. But they were curious about that 
funny, red Santa Claus. 

“ What is it, daddy? ” they asked, and as their 
father took it off the tree and put it into their 


hands, they discovered that it was a book —a 
book with cover and leaves cut in the shape of a 
Santa Claus, and the jolly old saint himself 
painted on the cover. They had never seen any- 
thing like it, but as they examined it they gave 
shrieks of delight, and ran to hug their mother. 
For this is what it said on the first page: 


A True Story for Bob 
A Fairy Tale for Dorothy 
A Story About Santa Claus for David 
All Made Into One Book 
By Their Loving Mother 
In the Time Saved for Her 
By Her Children’s Helpfulness 


Do you wonder that the Fairchild family 
thought it was the nicest Christmas they’d ever 
had? 


Comments, Plans and Work 


(Talk informally about the story. Show pic- 
ture of Jesus.) The Happy Valley children were 
“going to school to Jesus.’ Would their help- 
fulness have pleased him? Wouldn’t it be 
rather fun to give your mother a Christmas 
present of time? How could this group save 
time for mothers? 

(If the children would like to have such a 
Christmas secret, let them plan it now. One 
way to record the time saved would be as the 
Fairchild children did it, keeping account of all 
minutes they saved their mothers by doing for 
them things which are not being done regularly 
now, and putting the records on the home Christ- 
mas tree as ornaments. Another way is to keep 
a bank, — a box with a slit in the cover. ‘‘ Time 
is money,’—why not bank it? Each child 
should in this case be given a collection of card- 
board disks marked, “ 1 minute,” “5 minutes,” 
“10,” “15,” etc., “ 14 hour,” “1 hour.” These 
disks should be large enough to keep a record 
upon, such as ‘‘ wiped dishes,” “‘ dusted,” “ er- 
rand,” “promptness.” The banks should be 
taken home, kept a secret from the mothers, 
brought to the class on weekday sessions for 
counting, and finally given to the mothers as 
Christmas gifts, with a rhyme explaining what it 
all means. 

(Spend the rest of the hour doing Christmas 
work. Patterns for gifts will be found in The 
Mayflower Program Books. Spatter-work calen- 
dar blotters are made as follows: lay a small 
Christmas tree design of stiff cardboard on a 


58 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


blotter. Plan this in a photograph tray or stout 
shallow box (about an inch high). Over the 
edges bend down tightly a piece of wire screening. 
Put a moistened tooth-brush (not too wet) over 
a cake of India ink and then pass the brush up 
and down the screen over the design. The ink 
will spatter through the screen on the card below, 
covering both the design and that part of the 
card with black spatterings. 

When the screen is taken off the tray and the 
blotter is dry enough to have the pattern re- 
moved, there will be a perfect design silhouetted 
against a black stippled background. The de- 
sign may then again be used as a pattern, pro- 
vided the ink which fell upon it has not curled 
it at the edges. 


Report of School A 
Saving Time for Mothers 
i Children delighted with this idea. A stationer 
had supplied us with Christmas card boxes of 
almost uniform: size, and each child was given an 


envelope of differently shaped bits of cardboard 
representing the number of minutes saved. 


Incident of Self-Control 

Anne arrived with her arm in a cast. She had 
broken her collar-bone the night before, and was 
now the center of the stage. 

Boys: Did you yell? 

ANNE: I couldn’t, because Betty was taking 
her music lesson. 

JoHn: Well, what do you know about that! 


Report of School B 
Work 
Made Christmas cards and rehearsed our play- 
let. 


Story and Saving Time Plan 

Used this story and idea just after Christmas, 
instead of before, after a discussion of about what 
our mothers had done for us at Christmas. 
Today we read several Christmas stories. (See 
report of School B in Twelfth Weekday program.) 


TENTH SUNDAY 


December 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


Quiet Music. (Use for quiet music during 
these weeks the Christmas songs played softly. 
“ Holy Night ” is one which immediately brings 
about a worshipful atmosphere. It is taught in 
most day schools, and the children recognize it 
at once and follow the thought in their minds. 
Show the picture of Bethlehem while the first 
two stanzas of “O Little Town of Bethlehem ” 
are sung. If this is on the blackboard, or copies 
of it were given the children to learn last week, 
they can sing it themselves. If not, the assistant 
may sing it.) 

Scripture Reading. 
2 : 8-16.) 

Pictures and Song. (Show pictures of Beth- 
Jehem shepherds. If the children know “ While 
Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night” or 
the first stanza of “ Noel,” let them sing one or 
both now, while the pictures are in sight. Other- 
wise let the assistants sing “ While Shepherds 
Watched.’’) 


Offering and Prayer. (Thanking God for his 
great gift, praying that our gifts may make Jesus’ 
birthday a happy one for others.) 


(Read or recite Luke 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Discussion and Use of the Familiar. (If 
the class has begun to “bank” time saved for 
their mothers, a short exchange of their experi- 
ences will encourage those slower in starting. 
Continue dramatization of the Christmas story, 
this time retelling it from the point of view of 
either the innkeeper or a guest at the inn [draw- 
ing out ideas beforehand], or of the Wise-men. 
If the latter story is not known well enough, send 
the children to Matt. 2 : 1-12.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and F ellowship 


Poem. “If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy” 
If I had been a shepherd boy 

Out on the hills that Christmas night 
And heard the angels’ song of joy 

And seen the heavens flaming white, 


I think I never could forget; 

I know I’d be remembering yet! 

I could not be a shepherd boy, 
For that was long and long ago; 

But still the angels’ chant of joy 
Comes echoing across the snow, 

And I can listen if I will 

And hear their holy anthem still. 


If I had been a sleeping guest 
Lodged at the inn that Christmas night, 
When the new Lord was laid to rest 
In the cold stall in humble plight, 
I know I would have waked instead 
And given him my warm, soft bed. 
But I was not a lodger there, 
It was so long ago indeed, 
Yet all around me everywhere 
Are little children still in need, 
And when I love and cherish them 
I serve the Babe of Bethlehem. 


If I had been a Wise-man’s son 

And seen the star that Christmas night, 
And watched the travelers starting on 

Their journey toward the wondrous light, 
I would have begged to go with them 
To worship Christ at Bethlehem. 
I could not follow with the star — 

That was two thousand years gone by — 
But still its shining is not far; 

Its holy beams are very nigh, 
And whoso looks with praying eyes 
Still sees its glory in the skies. 

— Nancy Byrd Turner. 


(Help the children to appreciate this, reviewing 
last Sunday’s picture of an unhappy world wait- 
ing to be told the way to live, the great happiness 
which the shepherds must have felt when they 
heard the good news first of all, and bringing the 
thought up to the present time, when there still 
are people who have not heard or have forgotten 
the good news, and need it today. Show how we, 
realizing our own mistakes, can be made happy 
like the shepherds, by remembering that Jesus 
was born just to show us how to keep from mak- 
ing mistakes — to “save” us. Remembering in 
this way is like listening by oneself, and hearing 


60 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


anew the good news which the angels told the 
shepherds. 

(Read the first stanza of the poem with feeling. 
Follow it with a prayer.) 

Song. “Away in a Manger.” (If this is 
familiar, and the Beginners meet at the same 
time as the Primary Department, say that today 
the story of the birth of the little Lord Jesus is 
to be told to the Beginners. Suggest helping tell 
the story to the little ones by singing it outside 
their door, or behind screens right after their 
teacher has told them the story. 

(If this bit of departmental cooperation is 
feasible, the Beginners’ teacher will have suggested 
just how it may best be carried out. The time 
for telling the story is near the end of the hour. 
The Primary second class period will be shortened, 
or perhaps omitted altogether, for as soon as the 
Beginners’ story is finished, and the teacher says, 
“If you listen, I think you'll hear the same story 
sung,” the choir, invisible or visible, as the case 
may be, should be ready. 

(It may be that the plan is more fitting for the 
third-grade children alone. If not practical at all 
because of a difference in the time of class ses- 
sions, or disturbance to other classes, the de- 
partment continues its regular schedule.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


The New Story. (The story in the week-day 
class was about children who found out what 
their mother wanted and needed most of all and 
gave it to her. Here is another story of a mother 


= 


who wanted just one thing in the world for 
Christmas. ‘Tell ‘The Jar of Rosemary,” from 
The Story-Teller, by Maud Lindsay, or The Second 
Year Mayflower Program Book, by Perkins and 
Danielson.) 

Report of School B 


We talked about the phrases of “‘ O Little Town 
of Bethlehem ”’ which needed explaining such as, 
“dreamless sleep,” “ the hopes and fears of all 
the years,’ ‘“‘while mortals sleep,” “‘ morning 
stars proclaim the holy birth.” When talking 
about ‘“ dreamless sleep ” one volunteered the in- 
formation that an upset stomach caused dream- 
ing, which sidetracked us a little. The children 
learned the song at home, two stanzas. Many 
of them knew it from hearing it on the victrola. 

The weekday children gave their little sketch 
for us during the second worship period. This 
was followed by telling “ A Jar of Rosemary.” 


Report of School A 

The Golden Rule 

Tommy tried to ‘“‘ start something ”’ before the 
opening service. Leader told what she had heard 
and why it made her sorry (see “ Failure to Make 
Christianity Function,” page 51); then said, 
“Would you have liked to be pinned in the mud 
like that? Then it’s forgetting our rule, isn’t it? 
May be you weren’t in our Saturday class when 
we took for our class song the Golden Rule?” 
He was in the class; knew the song; looked 
guilty and calmed down. All there sang the song, 
““As ye would others should to you, so, Jesus 
said, to others do.” 


TENTH WEEKDAY 
Plans, Story and Work 


’ 


Count the “money” or minutes which the 
children have saved for their mothers. Discuss 
new ways to be tried in addition this week. 

» Try to make the children want to make the 
angels’ message of “ peace on earth” and “ good 
will” come true in their own homes. It can be 
made a veritable ‘‘ magic month ” — no quarrels 
— everybody helping. 

® Tell “A Jar of Rosemary,” if it was not told 
on Sunday. 

», Add in the work period the making of Christ- 
mas tree decorations for the home tree. 


Report of School A 
Time Saved for Mothers 
Children did not bring their banks, but re- 
ported. Most of them had already begun 
“ banking ”’ their mothers’ time. 


The Christmas Program 

They arrived with packages of completed cos- 
tumes sent by their mothers. Everybody wanted 
first, to see them; second, to try them on, and 
third, to compare themselves with the pictures. 
They quite naturally took the poses of the charac- 
ters in the pictures, and played shepherds, Wise- 
men, Mary and Joseph, each choosing from the 
pictures the character he or she wanted to por- 
tray. It was natural, too, to sing the songs 
which went with the pictures, and to recite or 
read the Bible passages. There was no thought 
of rehearsing in all this. The story-playing was 


61 


at the children’s own suggestion. As such it was 
infinitely more valuable than the rehearsal which 
the leader, still bound to the traditional method 
of “ getting up” a program, felt necessary to the 
finished production, and bungled badly on the 
Eleventh Weekday. 


Problem of Assistants 

The problem today was with the girl assis- 
tants who made most of the spatter-work blotters 
which were made, and started home, having 
appropriated calendars, blotters and other ma- 
terials provided for the class. When it was ex- 
plained that they were welcome to any patterns 
and ideas, but that they had been asked to help 
the children, they paid for materials they had used. 


Santa Claus Again 

Stuart (calling out in the work period): Say, 
Miss Bradley, you know I told you I wrote a 
letter to Santa Claus. (Attention from all.) 
Well, I got an answer yesterday. 

LEADER (blankly): You did? 

Stuart: Yes, he said he got my letter. 

(See stories and Stuart’s response in Thir- 
teenth Sunday program.) 


Report of School B 


After games and Christmas stories the children 
made gifts for their families and colored a poster 
for the Primary Department. 


ELEVENTH SUNDAY 


December 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Use songs and Scripture passages which are 
to occur in the pantomime or other program being 
planned for next Sunday.) 


What School A Did 
Quiet Music. “Silent Night.” 
“O Little Town of Beth- 


Song and Picture. 
lehem.”’ 

Reading and Recitation. Luke 2 : 8-14. 

Song. “ While Shepherds Watched.” 

Poem. “If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy.” 

Offering Song. “Freely ye received, freely 
give.” 

Prayer. 

Interruption During Quiet Music. James, 
a second-grade boy, had discovered the Christian 
flag and begun to play with it. 

Leaver: Bring the flag here, James. Stand 
and hold it. Why did God send Jesus into the 
world? 

CuiLpREN: To show us how to do right. 

Leaver: Yes, for it had been an unhappy 
world. People kept making mistakes. So those 
who were expecting a Saviour were glad. And 
as Jesus grew up people watched and tried to be 
like him who was called the Christ. They were 
called Christians after Christ’s name, and this is 
the Christian flag. All who follow Christ may 
carry it. There is a flag salute which we shall 
learn some day. Christmas is a good time to 
get out the Christian flag, isn’t it? James, please 
put the flag back, and we’ll think about the night 
Christ was born. 

(Pianist resumed playing.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Expression of Impressions Received. (Chil- 
dren make two silhouette posters of the Christ- 
mas stories for the Beginners’ or their own de- 
partment. Or, if preferred, and the space is 
large enough, practise action or posing or recita- 
tions for the Christmas program.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Continue the worship with songs and passages 
learned, and further appreciation of the poem, 
“If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy.’’) 


What School A Did 

Reading. Wise-men story. 

Song. Two stanzas of “Silent Night.” 

Story. “The Magic Christmas Tree,” (The 
Pilgrim Elementary Teacher, December, 1922). 

Conversation. Department planned to bring 
gifts next Sunday for a mission school about 
which the children knew. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Another Christmas Story. (Tell ““ Why the 
Chimes Rang,” by Raymond MacDonald Alden, 
abbreviated.) 

Report of School A 


Alternate for First Class Period 

Discussed progress in saving time for mothers. 
Stuart had saved two hours the day before. He 
wanted more “hours” and “ half-hours.” His 
mother had said, if he’d go to the post-office for 
her, it would save her an hour and a half. Two 
more children, absent before, wanted ‘‘ money.” 
This led to talk about making December a magic 
month for our families. Remembering the mes- 
sage, ‘‘ peace on earth,” there would be no quar- 
reling. Leader told story based on poem, “I 
Love You, Mother.” One head went down! 
Looked up shepherd and Wise-men stories; 
talked about our service. 
An Invitation 

The church-school superintendent came in and 
invited the department to meet with the rest of 
the school on the next Sunday, also to ask if the 
third grade would share with everybody the 
special program which they were preparing. 
Help from the whole school with the singing was 
promised. Third grade graciously accepted the 
invitation. “Sure, we'll give it for them.” 


Addition to Second Class Period 


“What Can I Give Him?” from Songs for 
Little People. 
Anne: “ Give my heart’ means “ give love.” 


ELEVENTH WEEKDAY 
Christmas Plans and Work 


Count up “‘ money ” (time) saved; discuss still 
more ways of saving it. 

Go over all the parts of the program to be given 
the following Sunday, with costumes and proper- 
ties. 

Study pictures of Christmas scenes, and try to 
drape the costumes and use properties as nearly 
like those pictured as possible. 

The children will make the final assignment of 
parts, and choose those who know them best for 
the recitation of memory passages. 

It may be that the class will like to let others 
share their program some day during Christmas 
week. Even if this service was originally planned 
solely for the department or the church school, 
there are always shut-ins, or children or aged 
people in institutions,who would delight not only 
in a visit from the children themselves, but 
in their songs and pictured stories. 

Finish the Christmas work, the children copying 
or composing a rhyme to be presented to their 
mothers with the ‘‘ bank,” and taking this, with 
all other Christmas articles, home. 


Report of School A 

Time Saved for Mothers 

Stuart had saved eleven hours. John’s mother 
had called up leader during the week to say she 
was exhausted finding enough work for John to 
do. He had done every thing he could think of 
to help her; finally insisted on cleaning all the 
silver! 


Christmas Program Plans 

Everybody agreed that the girls had to be the 
angel choir. The choice of Mary fell automati- 
cally to Mary, as she was a newcomer and did 
not know the songs. The boys chose their own 
parts, all except John, who wished to be nothing 
at all. He decided on “Joseph” but found 
Joseph’s turban too hot. 

As for actual rehearsing, there was very little. 
Even the best and most helpful girls in the class 
were irritating, which clearly shows what the 
leader must have been. Besides the fact that it 
was vacation and they were all in holiday mood, 
the temperature in the chapel was around ninety. 
Nobody had any interest in anything but romp- 
ing. We played out-of-doors for a while, but this 
had no calming effect. Everything slow as to 


63 


program but loud and fast as to children. While 
leader fussed over stage setting (a matter of clear 
platform and screens, which should have been 
decided upon if not arranged before the children 
came), the children’s bedlam could have been 
heard in the next town. They broke two of the 
four new shepherd’s crooks at once. Frankie, 
who broke the first, offered and was allowed to 
take both home and have his father mend them. 

The boy who, on our hike through the Soldiers’ 
Home grounds, had suggested making something 
for the old soldiers had already made the counter- 
suggestion, “‘ I think they’d like this much better. 
They never get out to see things.” Nothing 
definite decided about it today, however; too 
much confusion. 


Bright Spots 


STUART AND FRANKIE (shouting to be heard 
above the din and confusion): Miss Bradley, we’ve 
decided we’re mean to you. You do everything 
for us, give us parties and everything and take us 
on hikes and everything, and then we won't do 
what you want. We're going to be good! 


Frankie: I’m going to be good from now on. 
Stuart: I’m going to do my best. 


LraveEr (entirely out of patience): Frank Nor- 
ton, how many times have I got to tell you to 
come out from behind those screens?’ 

FRANKIE: But you fold us to get behind here! 

Leaver: I told you to go there! 

FRANKIE: Oh, ’scuse me for not understanding! 


Leaver (humbly): Excuse me for not making 
myself clear. 

(A short time ago Frankie said when he failed 
to understand a direction, ‘ Well, gosh, why 
don’t you tell me what you're talking about! ”) 

Joun (at home): I was naughty again today, 
mother. I wouldn’t do anything Miss Bradley 
told me to. 

Stuart’s Morner (during the week): Why, 
Stuart is a different boy. He’s so polite. He was 
so bold the neighbors all complained. In three 
weeks [I noticed the difference. I said to his 
father, “‘ Aren’t you glad I’m sending him down 
to the Sunday school? Do you see how different 
he is)” And his father said yes, he’d noticed 
the change. 


TWELFTH SUNDAY 
December 


THE CHRISTMAS PROGRAM 


Whatever form this program takes, it should be 
a service rather than an entertainment; a retell- 
ing, by means of songs, pictures and recitation, 
of the beautiful stories connected with the birth 
of Jesus. The program, or service, is the children’s 
expression of their love for the stories, and as such 
is a gift to those who would hear them again. It 
will not last over half an hour, and whether it is 
given for their own department alone, or to the 
entire school, the last half of the session should 
be reserved for it. By this arrangement the 
classes may meet first for their regular instruc- 
tion, and the third-grade children will have plenty 
of time to get into their costumes. 


Report of School A 


During the first half-hour leader and helpers 
had the boys in the kitchen, getting them into 
their costumes, while an assistant took care of 
the seven members of the “angel choir” and 
** Mary.” 

Boys in the kitchen very much excited and 
hard to manage. Frankie, shepherd, would not 
let the crooks alone. Leader afraid they would 
be broken. He climbed all over the sink and 
table in his costume; finally tried the gas-stove. 
Leader pulled him down. He was to have ap- 
peared with his crook in front of the curtains and 
lead the school in the shepherd story. 

LeapEr: This settles it, Frankie. No one with 
a spot on the front of his costume like that, and 
with those hands, could possibly go before the 
whole school; you can see that. 

Frangie. It’ll rub right off. 
made it worse.) 

Leaver: No, it won’t rub right off. And this 
is a brand new costume which Stuart’s mother 
made for you. You can’t even get your hands 
clean in cold water. 

Frankie: Yes, I can. I gotta lead them in 
that story. (Rushed to faucet, turned it on full 
force, spattered whole front of his costume. Scrubbed 
hands. Came back.) Now can I, Miss Bradley? 

Leaver: With that costume? See what you’ve 
done to it now! (Frankie is appalled.) 

FRANKIE: Please, Miss Bradley. 

Leaper: Frankie, I said you couldn’t do it. I 
can’t give special honors to boys who don’t earn 


(Tried it and 


64 


them. Take your crooks now. Prk you 
take the one which you broke. 

FRANKIE: Aw — 

Joun: Poor Frankie, he doesn’t get anything! 

Leader remembers that Frankie did his best to 
mend the one he broke, so lets him have a new 
one. 

Leader showed Christmas pictures once more, 
and in their interest to get last details of the poses 
they were to copy, boys calmed down so that 
when leader put pictures away and turned natu- 
rally to one of Jesus, which had been put on the 
door, they followed her and were quiet as mice as 
she said, ‘‘ Great Teacher, we are going into the 
other room now to tell the rest of the school the 
story of your birth through songs and pictures. 
Oh, will you help us to make the pictures so real 
and so beautiful that those who see them will 
feel as if they had been to worship at the manger 
with the shepherds! ”’ 

FRANKIE (softly): Can I lead the line, Miss 
Bradley? 

Leaver: I’m going to ask a boy who has 
minded every time I’ve spoken to him. 

Joun: That’s not me. 

Tommy: Me either. 

Frankie: I haven’t minded. 

Stuart took his place at the head and they 
marched quietly in, and went through the pro- 
gram in a surprisingly reverential manner. In 
fact, the little service was so charged with the 
spirit of worship, the attitudes of those in the 
tableaux were so childlike and natural (they took 
their own positions, with no suggestions from the 
leader), and the whole program was given so 
simply that it was in truth a service of worship 
in which the whole school and visitors joined. 
The mothers had tears in their eyes as they 
helped the children out of their costumes, and 
even the children were quiet as they left. Fol- 
lowing is the program: 


Song. ‘“ O Little Town of Bethlehem ” 
(by the entire school). 

Scripture Reading and Prayer. 
(From Service No. XI in Worship and 
Song.) Led by church-school superinten- 
dent. (The Scripture reading was sup- 
posed to have been led by Frankie.) 


oe ee ee ee ee ee ee Ur 


¥ 
* 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 65 


gel. 

Song. Two stanzas of “ While Shep- 
herds Watched Their Flocks,”’ (by choir). 

Song. Third stanza of same song (by 
choir while curtains were closed). 

Piano Music. “Silent Night” (one 
stanza). 
Tableau. Mary, Joseph, the shep- 


le The Shepherds and the An- 


herds. 

Song. Two stanzas of “ Silent Night ” 
(by choir). 

Song. Third stanza of “ Silent Night ” 
(by choir while curtains were closed). 

Tableau. Wise-men on the way to 

Bethlehem. 

Song. Stanza by choir of “Silent 
Night ”’ beginning, — 

“ Silent night, holiest night, 
Guiding star, lend thy light,”’ 

Piano Music. One stanza of Noel 

(while curtains were closed). 


offering gifts. 

Song. Last stanza of ‘“ Noel,” begin- 
ning, “ Then entered in there Wise-men 
three,” (by choir). 

Song. “O Come, all Ye Faithful” (by 
the entire school). 


Tableau. Mary, Joseph, Wise-men 


Report of School B 


The entire Primary Department had its service 
together. Each grade sang its songs; two stan- 
zas of “If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy ” were 
recited by third-grade children; the Christmas 
story, as given in The Story Hour, by Wiggin and 
Smith, was told. (Either because of the excite- 
ment of the season, or some other reason, not 
much interest was shown in the story. Leader 
would tell it differently another time.) After 
the story the children made Christmas greeting 
cards for their friends. 


TWELFTH WEEKDAY 


Sharing the Christmas Program 


(This session will be held on the regular day of 
the week for the class, or on whatever day is 
most convenient for presenting the Christmas 
program to a chosen group.) 


Report of School A 


Christmas Program at Soldiers’ Home 


Owing to misunderstanding only three boys and 
five girls came. Gave program in big smoking- 
room, with no piano. In the hall the boys broke 
two more crooks, but this time they came run- 
ning to leader, each anxious to share the blame 
and each offering to carry the broken ones. The 
three boys had first to be shepherds, then Wise- 
men. Some delay in recostuming, but other- 
wise program went smoothly. This time, how- 
ever, it was a “‘ program” and not a “ service of 
worship.” 

“While shepherds watched their flocks by 
night,’ the house cat drew near. Leader hoped 
it would furnish the illusion of a flock, but the 
cat was playful, and too much of a temptation to 
the two “all seated on the ground.” First tab- 
leau rather spoiled. (See children’s criticisms, 
_ Teport on Thirteenth Sunday.) 

Soldiers gave children a “ rising vote of thanks ” 
for coming down. One Gira: Aren’t the old 
soldiers beautiful; they have snow-white hair! 
Revealing Incidents 

While children were gathering, we started to 
play Fox and Geese, but John spoiled two circles. 
He not only will not join in games, but spoils 
them for others. 

FLorRIE (running from Lawrence): Miss Brad- 
ley, make Lawrence be good. 

Leaver: Make Lawrence be good? Why, I 
can’t make him good. Only Lawrence himself 
can. I can’t make any one of you good. 

CxuILpREN: That’s right, we have to do it our- 
selves! 

Joun (on the way home): Stuart always minds, 
doesn’t he? My mother told me to mind you, 
Miss Bradley. I like to mind. 

LEeApER (skeptical): You mean you like the 
feeling you have after you have minded, and you 
hate the feeling you have when you don’t mind? 


Joun: Yes. But I don’t do it just the same. 
Isr’t tt funny? 

Leaver: Wouldn’t you think we’d always do 
what we know would make us feel better? 

Joun: Yes, but we don’t. 

Leaver: I know. I do the wrong thing myself 
lots of times. 

Joun: Oh, no, you don’t, Miss Bradley. 
You're good! (! !) 


Stuart Black’s name fascinates his playmates. 
At school they call him Stuart Whitie, Stuart 
Brownie, etc. Stuart has a temper, usually 
under control. On the way back he drew the 
sled with the box of costumes on it. This didn’t 
prevent him from throwing snowballs at the 
leader most of the way. Anne, broken collar- 
bone and all, put herself in front of the leader, 
shouting, “‘I’ll be your goddy-bard!”’ Leader 
didn’t notice when snowballing ceased (all but 
three children had gone), nor that Stuart was 
being teased. Suddenly Stuart flung the sled 


rope to the ground. ‘‘ You can draw your own 
sled,” he announced, in a perfect fury, “ and I'll 
never come near this class again!’ Ran down 


street leaving leader, Mary and John gasping. 
Leader, thinking back, suddenly realized that 
Mary, the mildest, meekest, newest little girl in 
the class, had been repeating, “Stuart Black, 
Stuart White, Stuart Brown,” as if in a spell. 
She was thinking only of the colorful name, of 
course. Stuart’ was thinking it was the last 
straw. Leader was thinking nothing at all. She 
came to, however, and called after the disappear- 
ing figure, “‘ Why, Stuart, we didn’t mean to do 
anything. We're sorry if we hurt you. You’ve 
drawn the sled and done all the work — we 
wouldn’t have you feel like that for anything.” 
(No response. Figure kept on retreating.) 
Mary (in wonder): What made him do that? 
Leaver: I[ think it was because he gets tired 
of having his name repeated and talked about. 
You didn’t know it because you don’t go to school, 
but the boys and girls all tease him about it. 
Joun: I don’t blame him for getting mad. We 
plague him all the time. 
Mary (miserable): Oh, dear, I didn’t mean to! 
Leaver: Of course you didn’t. I didn’t even 
notice your doing anything, and I’m just as sur- 


66 


SS ee SS eee 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 67 


prised as you are. But you know how “mad” 
it makes you sometimes, when people keep at a 
thing and you wish they wouldn’t. 

Joun: I know it. It makes you mad. I 
noticed he’d been getting mad for a long while. 
He hasn’t thrown any snowballs since way down 
on Gage Street! 


Mary: Oh, dear, suppose he shouldn’t come 
back to the class! 

Joun: My, but we’d miss him! He’s so help- 
ful. And he always minds. He’s about the best 
one in it. 

Leaver: I think he will come back. But he 
may not want to at first. He’s said he wouldn’t, 
and that will make it harder for him. 


Joun: I know it. It makes you feel foolish to 
do something you’ve said you wouldn’t. 

Leaver: He has a worse temper than the rest 
of you boys. If he does come back, it will mean 
that he has controlled it. And that will be a big 
thing for him to do. 

Joun: He’s always doing big things. 

LEADER: Let’s not mention his saying he 


wouldn’t come back, if he does, — that will make 
it easier for him. 

Mary: I won't. 

Joun: Neither will I. 

(A few blocks farther on. Mary had left.) 

Joun: Oh, look, there’s Stuart behind us now, 
getting ready to throw a snowball at us! He’s 
all over being mad. Let’s pretend everything’s 
just the same.”’ (Calling) “‘ Hello, Stuart! Going 
to throw a snowball at us? Look out, — here’s 
one!” 

Report of School B 

We talked about our Christmas at home — 
what we had done for others, and what had been 
done for us. Then leader told the story of the 
Fairchild children saving time (Ninth Weekday 
program). We talked about it, then decided we 
would do it for our parents as a surprise, as 
several mothers’ birthdays were coming soon. 
We made some discs and diamonds, colored them 
and wrote on them. In their books children 
wrote, “ Time is money — why not bank it?” 
and made a list of ways they could help. Sang 
our Christmas carols instead of playing games. 


THIRTEENTH SUNDAY 
December 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Have Christmas music and informal conversa- 
tion about Christmas gifts, both those received 
and given. Continue by thanking God for all 
the love and kindness which the little Lord Jesus 
brought into the world, using the children’s 
original song-response, and praying that we who 
enjoy the good things which his coming brought 
may want to share with others, until every one 
shall come to know and love him.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Familiar Ground. (Talk over the service and 
impressions received from the institutions visited. 
Compare mothers’ reception of the children’s 
Christmas gifts of time. 

(To lead up to the story in the next period, re- 
mind the children of Mrs. Fairchild’s story written 
in the time saved by her children. Recall that 
the cover of the book said: 

“A True Story for Bob.” 

“A Fairy Tale for Dorothy.” 

“A Story about Santa Claus for David.” Ex- 
plain that the story which will be told in the 
worship period presently is the first part — “ A 
True Story for Bob.’’) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


A Christmas Song. 

Preface to Story. When we were talking 
about our Christmas gifts we reminded each 
other of the happiness of Christmas time. We 
thanked our heavenly Father for all the love and 
kindness which that one gift of the little Lord 
Jesus brought into the world. It made you want 
to make your families and friends happy on his 
birthday. It made them want to make you 
happy. For hundreds and hundreds of years it 
has made people want to make others happy, not 
only on the birthday itself, but all through the 
year. The story I shall tell you now is about a 
boy named Nicholas. We shall see what it made 
him do. 

(This and the following stories of St. Nicholas 
are based on an article, “‘ From St. Nicholas to 


Santa Claus,” by Charles Johnston, published in 
The Outlook, December 20, 1913. The events 
narrated in it are taken from two Greek manu- 
scripts, dating back to the tenth century, belong- 
ing to the Zion Monastery in Myra, and to an- 
other, a part of which is perhaps a century older.) 


Story. 
Tue Turee Bacs or GoLp 

Nicholas was a little Greek boy. He lived far 
away from here, but much nearer the land where 
Jesus was born than we do. Not so many people 
knew about Jesus then as now. This was less 
than three hundred years after Jesus came, and 
the stories of his teaching and healing and love 
had not spread so far. But though few in that 
long-ago time knew of him, Nicholas knew. He 
had heard the stories over and over again from 
his father and mother, who were Christians, and 
from his uncle, who was a bishop of the church. 

Nicholas was the pride and joy of his father 
and mother and uncle. It was no wonder. He 
was as handsome and lovable a boy as ever lived. 
He was afraid of nothing, and loved everybody. 
But there were some things which made him 
angry in an instant. One was to see a big boy 
bully a smaller one. Another was to see some- 
body cruel to an animal. Another was to see 
children unkindly treated. Then his anger blazed 
forth into a perfect fury, and he would rush to 
protect the weaker one. He couldn’t bear to see 
poor people suffer. He would give away money 
which his father, who was very rich, gave him, 
to feed hungry children. You can see why, even 
as a little boy, he would like the stories about 
Jesus. He liked the things that Jesus did. He 
liked them so well, indeed, that he wanted to 
take Jesus as his pattern and be like him. 

“* T love him! ”’ he said to his father and mother. 
““T want to give myself to him. I want always to 
serve him!” And so, instead of giving him to 
some trade or business, the happy parents gave 
him to the church, to grow up to be a kind of 
minister, like his uncle, the bishop. 

Nicholas lived in a town by the sea. He liked 
to watch the ships coming and going, and to 
imagine the time when he should be on one, 
sailing toward the land where Jesus lived. How 
he wanted to visit Jerusalem, and see for himself 


elt et er aie * 


ee ee ee 


a 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 69 


the very streets where Jesus had walked about 
teaching and healing! His uncle, the bishop, had 
planned for a long time to take such a trip. 

Finally the time came for the bishop to go. 
Nicholas was old enough now to take charge of 
his uncle’s work. He was glad, for it would give 
him the chance to do the kind of thing his great 
hero, Jesus, used to do, — go about among the 
people helping them in all sorts of ways. 

While the bishop was still away Nicholas’ 
father and mother died. Nicholas was left with 
a great fortune. What should he do: with it? 
He never thought of spending it for fine houses 
and clothes for himself. Jesus wouldn’t have 
done that. Jesus would have used it to help 
others. And Nicholas had taken Jesus for his 
pattern, you know. 

He remembered the great Teacher’s words, 
“Freely ye received, freely give,’ and he re- 
membered, too, I think, how Jesus had said that 
good deeds should be done in secret; how often, 
after he himself had done kind things for people, 
he warned them to tell no one. 

Just at this time Nicholas heard a very sad 
story. There was living in Patara, Nicholas’ 
city, a very learned man with three beautiful 
daughters. They had been rich, but had now 
Jost all their money. They were so poor that 
they were starving. and the father had almost 
decided that, rather than have his daughters 
starve, he would sell them into slavery. It was 
a terrible thing to have happen, but at least they 
would have homes and food. 

Nicholas had scarcely heard the story before 
he had decided what to do. He always acted 
quickly — it was one thing that made him so 
lovable. He didn’t wait to do a kind act. 

He filled a bag with gold, and that night, as 
soon as it was dark, he secretly left his house. No 
one knew what he was intending to do, and he 
meant that no one should know. It was like a 
game he was playing with himself, trying to keep 
his errand a secret from every one else. As he 
approached the learned man’s home, he must 
have wondered how he could ever give his purse 
without being discovered, but as he crept stealth- 
ily near, the moon coming from behind a cloud 
showed him an open window in the house. This 
was his chance. 
of gold and stole away again before any one 
could see him. 

He didn’t forget about the three daughters and 


Quickly he threw in the purse _ 


their father. He kept track of them until he 
knew that again they needed help. The money 
was gone. They were as poor as before, and a 
second time, to save the daughters from slavery, 
he left his house under cover of the dark, with a 
second bag of gold. Finding an open window as 
he had before, he threw in the second purse and 
was able again to escape without being seen. 

But the third time he was not so fortunate. 
The old man was determined to know who it was 
that had made him and his daughters so happy 
and saved them from suffering. So as the third 
bag of gold suddenly dropped on the bedroom 
floor, quick as a flash the learned man rushed 
outside. It was dark, but he could barely see a 
figure hurrying away. He made up his mind to 
catch him. He ran as he had never run before, 
and at last he caught him. He fell on his knees 
at Nicholas’ feet and thanked him again and 
again for saving his daughters from slavery. 
But Nicholas was disappointed. He had not 
wanted to be found out, and he made the man 
promise that he would never tell who it was who 
had helped him. Whether he did or not I cannot 
say, but certain it is that as one family after 
another in the city of Patara was mysteriously 
helped, word began to go around that it was 
Nicholas, the nephew of the bishop, who had 
secretly left the gifts. 

And so it came about that when money was 
thrown from the darkness in at the window of a 
poor family, those inside would cry happily, “ It 
is from Nicholas!”’ And when in the morning 
toys were discovered at the doorstep of one sick 
child, or food or clothes at the door of another 
(for he was known to be especially fond of chil- 
dren), the people would look wise and say, “ The 
good Nicholas was been here.”’ 

For they had discovered his secret. 


School B. This story took so well that 
the leader used it with three different sets 
of children. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 
From the Old to the New. And this is the 
rest of Mrs. Fairchild’s story. 
THe Spirit oF St. NicHOLAS 
There was once in a land far away from here a 
very nice spirit. Now if you ask me what a 
spirit is I shall have to say that I don’t know 
exactly, for I’ve never seen one. 


70 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Joun: I know; God is a spirit. 

Nobody ever sees spirits any more than any 
one really and truly sees a fairy. But they live, 
whether you see them or not. Did you ever hear 
anybody say, ‘‘ He has a fine spirit,” or “ She 
shows a beautiful spirit,” or “The spirit of 
Abraham Lincoln lives on?” Of course it lives 
on, because you see spirits never die. It’s the 
part of you that doesn’t die. It lives in your 
body when you're alive, but though you may 
grow old and die, your spirit keeps as young as 
ever and goes right on living. 

As I was saying, there once came into the world 
an especially nice one. He belonged to a very 
nice man, so of course he was a nice spirit. The 
thing he liked best to do was to surprise children. 
He liked to leave goodies and toys at their door, 
and make them squeal with delight when they 
opened their eyes and found them in the mor- 
ning. 


Anne: The spirit of St. Nicholas! 


He never let any one see him or thank him. 
He didn’t care about being thanked especially. 
All he wanted to be sure of was making the chil- 
dren happy. Now spirits travel. They travel 
faster than you canimagine. They can go around 
the world in a minute and a half. This spirit 
traveled. First he traveled around the country 
where the man to whom he first belonged used to 
live. Then one day there came to that country 
a visitor from the north. He became acquainted 
with the spirit and liked him so much that he 
decided to take him home. He lived in a cold 
land where there is much ice and snow, and the 
spirit stayed there for some time. Everybody 
loved him — and who wouldn’t? Wouldn’t you 
love any one who came in the night and gave you 
surprises without even wanting to be thanked? 


(Appreciative nods.) 

Well, after a while the spirit traveled on. And 
everywhere he went the people gave him some- 
thing. In the far north, in the land of ice and 
snow and reindeer, they gave him a home near 
the north pole, and a sleigh, and a team of rein- 
deer all harnessed with silver bells. 

Stuart: “ Eight tiny reindeer.”’ 

In another country they gave him a pack of 

toys which must have been something like magic, 


because it was never empty no matter now much 
he took out of it. In another place they filled 


his sleigh with fir-trees. Somebody —no one 
knows who it was — gave him a red suit trimmed 
with fur, and high fur-lined boots. He didn’t 
really need them, for spirits don’t feel the heat 
nor the cold; but the people who gave it to him 
did, and forgot about his not really needing it. 
Somebody else, wanting to be sure that there 
would be a way for him to enter children’s houses 
even though they were locked, gave him chimneys 
to come down, and whenever I think of that I’m 
very glad indeed that he is a spirit, for of course 
nobody but a spirit could manage to come down 
a chimney with a large pack of toys without 
getting the least bit soiled. Others, realizing 
that he should have a place to leave his gifts, 
provided wooden shoes which they left on the 
hearth. 


Cuitp: That was in Holland. 


Still other children, who did not wear wooden 
shoes, gave him empty stockings to fill. 


In a warmer country where sleighs were not 
used, somebody presented him with a donkey to 
carry his pack. Why, people in one land gave 
him a whole band of little brownie workmen to 
help him make his toys! And somebody — no 
one knows who — thinking he must be lonely, I 
suppose, gave him a wife! And everywhere he 
went the people had pet names for him. 


AnnE: Kris Kringle’s one. Le _ Bon- 
homme Noel was probably in France. 


You have already guessed ours, but some 
people called him Grandfather Christmas; some 
Le Bonhomme Noel. 


Joun (the light of discovery in his eyes): 
That’s what Noel means! 


Some called him Sankt Claus; and other, like 
ourselves, something very like that — Santa 
Claus. 


Now there were once some children who lived 
next door to each other whose names were Jack 
and Virginia. They made up their minds that 
they would see this spirit. They would stay up 
all night long if necessary, and if Santa Claus 
was, as we have said, a spirit which couldn’t be 
seen, at least they would keep their eyes glued 
on the stockings they had hung in readiness for 
him, and see the toys being put into those stock- 
ings. Toys weren’t spirits. They could not 
only be seen perfectly well, but felt and played 
with. 


oe 


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AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 71 


The day before Christmas they tied a bell to 
each end of a long string which reached from 
Jack’s home to Virginia’s. 

“If I catch him first,” said Jack, “ I'll pull the 
string, and the minute you hear the bell you’ll 
know he’s caught. And you do the same thing.” 

So they didn’t go to bed that Christmas eve. 
They told their families what they intended to 
do, and after supper their fathers built bigger 
fires than usual in the grates. The children 
objected. 


“Tf there’s a fire in the chimney, Santa Claus. 


_ won't come down! ”’ they said. 

“It doesn’t make a bit of difference to Santa 
Claus whether there’s a fire or not,” their fathers 
explained, “and you'll need the warmth your- 
selves, if you stay up all night.” 

They were both glad of the fire for the warmth, 
but did you ever notice how sleepy watching a 
fire makes you, especially if it’s way after your 
bed-time? 

CuHorus: Yes! 

The two children in the two houses, watching 
alone, grew drowsier and drowsier, and before 
they knew it it was morning and they woke up 
in their own beds. Santa Claus had come and 
gone without their knowledge, for there were the 
stockings full of presents to prove it. Perhaps it 
was even he who had carried them up to their 
own beds. What a pity not to have been awake 
to say, “ There, Santa, I’ve caught you!”’ Now 
there would be a whole year to wait before they 
could try again. 

But a year is not long. On the next Christmas 
eve, Jack and Virginia fixed the strings with the 
bells on each end between their homes as before. 

“Now don’t you go to sleep this time,” each 
one said to the other. ‘‘ We'll catch him for 
sure.’ They promised faithfully that they would 
stay awake if they had to prop their eyes open 
with sticks; but will you believe it, before the 
fires in each fireplace had died down to coals, 
each head had tumbled over on a sofa pillow, and 
if they saw Santa Claus that night it was only in 
dreams. 

They were quite ashamed to face each other 
the next morning, but as neither one had been 
able to keep awake, neither could blame the 
other. 


When the third Christmas came around, how- 
ever, Virginia was as sure as Jack that she would 
catch old Santa Claus. ‘I hope he’ll come to my 
house first,’’ she wished. 

“‘Let’s hide somewhere this time,’’ suggested 
Jack. ‘‘ Maybe he hangs around waiting for us 
to go to sleep. Let’s not stay by the fire where 
he can see us.” 

So they each pretended to go to bed at the 
usual time, but instead, after the lights were out, 
slipped downstairs again, and hid in dark corners. 

In the middle of the night — or at least so late 
he was sure it must be midnight — Jack thought 
he heard a stir in the room. Yes sir, there was 
Santa, pack, beard, high boots and all. 

(Children evidently surprised.) 

Jack had heard no sound of reindeer hoofs on 
the roof, nor of silver sleighbells. He had not 
seen any one come down the chimney, nor through 
the door for that matter. The flickering fire was 
the only light in the room, and it was hard enough 
to make out anything at all. But St. Nick was 
fairly caught. Jack watched to see what would 
happen. 

First Santa Claus lowered the pack from his 
shoulders. Then he groped around the mantle- 
piece until he found a stocking. Jack’s eyes 
fairly popped out of his head as he tried to see 
what Santa was putting into it, for it grew bump- 
ier and bulgier until it was full. 

At that very minute a bell rang. 

‘ Bless my soul!”’ exclaimed Santa. 

Jack had jumped too. What did it mean? 
That was Virginia’s bell; she must have pulled 
the string. But the bell meant, “ve caught 
Santa Claus!’ How could Virginia be saying 
that when Santa was there, in plain sight, at 
Jack’s? 

(Tense interest.) 

‘You’re in my house. I’ve caught you! ”’ said 
Jack, jumping out of his corner. 

“Bless my soul!’ Santa exlaimed again, al- 
most letting the stocking fall. 

‘No use your trying to get away!”’ cried Jack 
delightedly, seizing Santa Claus by the sleeve. 
‘**T’ve caught you, Santa!” 

‘“So you have!” Santa admitted, sitting down 
suddenly as if he didn’t know what to do next. 
Jack leaned up against him. ‘‘ Now I can ask 
you some questions about yourself,’ he was 
saying, when Virginia’s bell rang again. 

‘How can she ring that bell) ’’ Jack asked. 


72 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER ~ 


“T’m the one who’s found you out. And you 
couldn’t very well be in two places at once, could 
you, Santa Claus? ” 


Over in Virginia’s house, in a dimly lighted 
room, a very excited little girl had just climbed 
up in Santa Claus’ lap. 

“ T had to ring Jack’s bell,” she explained, “ to 
show him that I found you out first, Santa Claus. 
We've been trying to catch you for three years, 
and this time I stayed awake long enough. I 
don’t believe Jack could keep his eyes open all 
this time.” 

“ Tinkle, tinkle,”’ said Jack’s bell. 

Virginia jumped. 

(Children as puzzled as Virginia and 
Jack.) 

“Our bell,” she said. ‘‘ Why, how can he be 
ringing it? It means ‘ I’ve caught Santa Claus.’ 
You couldn’t be in two places at once, could you, 
Santa? ”’ 

“Oh, easily,” was the answer. ‘I’m all over 
the world tonight.” 

“* At once?’ asked Virginia. 

** At once,” answered Santa. “* Else how could 
I get my work done? ” 

‘““T always wondered about that,” confessed 
Virginia. ‘‘ But, Santa Claus, people can’t be 
in two places at once.” 

“People can’t, but spirits can,” was the 
answer. “ Hasn’t any one ever told you I was 
a spirit? ”’ 

“ But I don’t see how even a spirit can be in so 
many places at once,” puzzled Virginia. 

“It’s a secret,” said Santa, ‘‘ but I'll tell you. 
The fact is, when its necessary for a spirit to be 
in many places at once, as it is for me on Christ- 
mas eve, the whole of that spirit isn’t all in one 
place at one time. It splits itself up into bits 
enough to go around, and then’’— here he 
lowered his voice more than ever — “it very 
often takes human form! ”’ 

“ Oh,” said Virginia, “‘ then that’s how I can 
see you!’’ My daddy says we can’t see spirits 
any more than we can fairies. But if you take 
human form A 


And in the other house Jack was saying, ‘‘ But, 
Santa, if you’re a spirit, how is it I can see and 
feel you? ”’ 

Santa’s voice had sunk to a whisper. ‘A 
spirit often takes human form, Jack.” 


“Whose human form?” asked Jack. 

** Anybody’s — it depends on who wants it.” 

“* Anybody’s? ”’ persisted Jack. 

‘““ Anybody’s,” answered Santa. 

“ Well, I wish you’d take the form of my father 
and mother and grandmother, then,” said Jack, 
“ because then you’d be around all the time and 
I could always tell you what I want.” 

Santa Claus laughed and crossed the room 
toward the electric light button. 


And just at that minute Virginia was saying in 


the next house, ‘‘ Could you please take the form — 


of my father or mother, Santa? Then I’d always 
have you when I wanted you!” Santa Claus 
reached for the electric button, laughing. 

As Virginia’s light went on, Jack’s house grew 
suddenly light too. Jack was blinking his eyes; 
Santa Claus pulled off his whiskers — and there 
stood Jack’s own father. 

As Virginia blinked her eyes in the light, there 
before her stood her father. 

“Daddy!” cried Virginia, running to him, 
“ the spirit is in you! ” 

“Father!” shouted Jack in the next house, 
“the spirit is in you!” 

The very next morning some children at the 
edge of the town heard a knock on their door. 
They ran to open it. No one was in sight, but 
on the doorstep was a big basket of toys. 

And Jack and Virginia, hiding behind a tree 
near-by, heard squeals of delight, and then, ‘“‘ O 
mother, come quick! Santa Claus has been here 
after all!” 

For Jack and Virginia had found that the spirit 
of Santa Claus — of that kind St. Nicholas who 
left his gifts in the dark so many years ago — is 
still truly alive. They found that he enters into 
the hearts not only of mothers and fathers and 
grandmothers and uncles and aunts and cousins, 
but even of children, if they want him. And 
isn’t it exactly like that good St. Nicholas to 
choose the birthday of his Lord and Master, 
Jesus, in which to Jet his spirit roam about and 
make others happy? 

FRANKIE: There isn’t any Santa Claus. 
I found that out already 

ANNE: Santa Claus is a spirit. 

FRANKIE: I don’t believe in Santa Claus. 

Leaver: But we have to believe in him. 
It’s St. Nicholas’ spirit, which is still alive, 
whether you believe it or not. All you 


— =! 


= —— ee (CF i 


oul, ee eae ee, i 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 73 


have to do is to look about at Christmas 
time. You find it everywhere. 

Frankie: Santa Claus is our fathers 
and mothers, I tell you! 

Leaver: That’s just what we were say- 
ing. It’s the spirit of that good St. Nicho- 
las, still living in the hearts of our fathers 
and mothers. 

Exinor: And even children can have it. 

Stuart (looking straight into space): I 
see it all. JI see every bit of it now. 


Report of School A 


Criticism of Christmas Service 

Leaver: What has this class done together 
lately? There are so many things we'll put them 
on the blackboard, and talk about them. 

Preparing and giving Christmas program 

(1.) For school 

(2.) For Soldiers’ Home 

Singing at the Hospital 

Christmas party 

(These last two were department enterprises. 
Time was lacking for checking up on them. 
The Primary Christmas party was a dismal 
failure, because of the third grade’s lack of co- 
operation. They sensed the whole trouble in 
their unconscious summing up of the party in 
February. See Frankie’s comment next day — 
“Wasn’t that a nice party? Some different 
from the Christmas one. We didn’t run that! ’’) 

Leaper: We'll start with the service last 
Sunday. How did you think it went? 

Untuingine Cuorvs: All right. 

Leaver: Was there any way we could have 
improved it? 

Joun: I giggled. 

(Leader had not known this. Found out after- 
ward that he had once smiled a little self-con- 
sciously.) 

ANNE (of the choir): The songs weren’t as good 
as they ought to be. 

Tommy: It was nice having the curtain and 
stage. 


Stuart: That’s why I didn’t think it was as 
good down at the Soldiers’ Home. That old 
smoky room with the tin picture of Uncle Sam 
right in back of us! ve 

Joun: Yes, and we had to get dressed right in 
front of them. It wasn’t like Sunday. 

Leaver: We couldn’t help the place we had 
to give it in, but was there anything we could 
have done to make it better? 

JoHN (disgustedly): We could have let that cat 
alone. 

Lawrence. I needn’t have played with it. 

Lreaper: Anything else? 

Somesopy: We broke the crooks. 

Leaver: Anything else? 

CuiLpREN: Not enough went. The boys had 
to be shepherds first and then Wise-men, and 
there couldn’t be any Joseph. 

Leaver: All these criticisms are good. Some 
of them I shouldn’t have thought of myself. 
But while we were preparing the program could 
we have done anything better? 

CHILDREN: We could have paid attention. We 
could have minded. 

Leaver: As you think of that Saturday when 
we were trying to go over it, do you think you 
helped very much? 

Joun: I didn’t. I was a naughty boy. 

Stuart: I didn’t, and I’m sorry. 

FRANKIE: Miss Bradley, can’t we have some- 
thing like that again? 

Leaver: If there’s time,Frankie, and if you'll 
really help. 

CHILDREN: We will. We'll be good. 

FLoreie: Can we go down to the Soldiers’ 
Home again? 

LEApER: Perhaps. 

Saving Time for Mothers 

Stuart saved fifteen hours for his mother. 
Frankie had scrubbed the floor for his mother 
and she said he did it better than she could her- 
self! Lawrence had almost run out of money. 
Nearly all had tried, and were pleased with their 
success. 


THIRTEENTH WEEKDAY 


Plans for the New Year 


Nore: If the children have taken hold of the 
idea of saving time for their mothers, partly, per- 
haps, because of a device which appealed to them, 
it would be deplorable if the helpful habit should 
now expire from lack of food to sustain it. This 
is what religious education is for, to help the 
children to live, not this week or this month, but 
all the time, according to the Christian ideals 
which we hold up to them. But holding up a 
“ Be kind to animals”’ sign this week, a “ Love 
your neighbor ” the next, and “‘ Be hospitable to 
strangers’’ another is not enough. The week 
they are exemplifying hospitality they must also 
refrain from tying tin cans to cats’ tails, and they 
should not love their neighbors so intensely for 
a certain period that animals and guests are both 
neglected. The reason that our work is never 
finished is that once we have held up a “ Be help- 
ful’’ sign, for instance, we can never take it 
down, no matter how many more we add to it. 

Therefore we shall still “ harp” on the idea of 
helpfulness at home, saving mothers’ time, and 
suggest another device for the children. 


Story 


Happy Vatitey’s New YEAR 

Happy Valley was simply plastered with pos- 
ters. They were not beautiful, but they were 
important, because a new law had been made. 
There was no excuse for not knowing about it, 
for the big signs announcing it were in every 
sort of public place. You could see them a 
block away, and read the great black letters 
which ran across the top. The letters said, — 


IT SHALL BE AGAINST THE LAW 
TO WISH ANYBODY IN HAPPY VALLEY 
A HAPPY NEW YEAR 


On telegraph-poles, on fences, on every corner, 
in the store, at the church, you could see little 
knots of people studying these posters and talk- 
ing about them. There was more printing, but 
it was the first lines that were so big and black. 

“What a funny law!” I can hear you say. 
“Imagine not being allowed to wish anybody a 
happy New Year.” 

Everywhere you could hear people as they met 
or parted on the street say, ‘‘Good morning, 
Happy New—” or, “ Well, good-bye, Mr. 


74 


Jones — wish you a hap —”’ and then suddenly 
clap their hands over their mouths as if they re- 
membered something. Sometimes they would 
laugh guiltily, and after a minute with a de- 
termined look finish what they started. Some- 
times one would look straight into another’s eyes 
and say, ‘I do wish you a happy New Year,” 
which would make the other look uncommonly 
glad, and say, “‘ Oh, thank you!” 

Children coming downstairs for breakfast would 
start shouting ‘“ Happy New —”’ and then check 
themselves. Others, like the Fairchild children 
who had worked so hard to save time for their 
mothers, had gone home the day before, after 
reading the new law, and put their heads together 
for a long time. Finally Bob said, ‘‘ I’m going to 
do it.” Dorothy did not respond for a moment. 

“T’d like to, but I’m afraid I'll forget,’ she 
said at last. 

* But you can try,’ Bob told her. 
says * Try.’” 

“ Tt’s an awfully long time,” little David said 
dismally. ‘“‘ All December was bad enough, but 
a whole year!” 

However, on New Year’s morning all three 
came down to breakfast with shining faces, and 
the moment they entered the dining-room where 
their father and mother sat, they shouted in a 
chorus, “I wish you a happy New Year!” 


Mrs. Fairchild almost dropped the coffee-pot in 
her surprise, and Mr. Fairchild jumped up and 
came around the table to shake hand with Bob 
and kiss Dorothy and little David. 

“You are children to be proud of!” he ex- 
claimed, delighted, “‘and your mother and I 
wish you the same! ”’ 

I know you are going to ask, ‘‘ But wasn’t that 
breaking the law?’ So I shall have to begin at 
the beginning and tell you all about it. 


It had been a wonderful Christmas in Happy 
Valley. A town council had been appointed, 
made up of men who would think up plans to 
make everything as attractive and Christmas- 
like as could be. They had ordered fir-trees 
brought down from the mountains and put up in 
rows all along the sides of the street, and a giant- 
sized Christmas tree was placed on the church 
lawn. On it were lights and stars and tinsel. 


“ The sign 


Then you will remember how Freddie Thorpe’s — 


eee eee ee 


a Sn ee 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 75 


father had suggested starting a store. The truck 
had come back from the cities outside the valley 
loaded with everything anybody could possibly 
think of wanting to buy for Christmas. So a big 
store had been started called the Happy Valley 
Community Store, and the whole top floor was 
given over to toys. There was a Santa Claus 
there, too, which showed the children that the 
spirit of good St. Nicholas had even discovered 
Happy Valley. 

On Christmas eve people gathered around the 
big tree on the church lawn, singing carols, and 
on Christmas morning early, others sang in the 
streets. Everybody was anxious to have that 
first Christmas in Happy Valley a happy one. 
Everywhere you could hear, ‘‘ Merry Christmas! ” 
and the wishes all came true, because one and all, 
old and young, were determined to do everything 
in their power to make it a merry Christmas. 

It was the second day after Christmas, when 
people living near the edge of the town saw com- 
ing down the road which had been cut between 
the mountains, a big covered wagon. It came on 
and on, and into the town itself. It stopped in 
front of the Happy Valley store, and from the 
driver’s seat stepped a man with a flowing beard 
and keen, kindly eyes. He looked like the Wise- 
men of old, and impressed all who were near in 
the same way. He put some steps against the 
back end of the wagon and helped his wife and 
two children to the ground. They were unusually 
nice looking children. The boys and girls near 
by wanted to ask them to their Christmas party 
at the church at once. Some of the town coun- 
cil, happening to be in the store, came out to 
greet the strangers. 

“Is there room for another family in your 
Happy Valley?’ asked the wise-looking man. 

The councillors were delighted. Then this 
family had come to stay! They could see from 
the speaker’s high forehead and keen eyes that 
he had knowledge and wisdom. ‘ We will make 
him a member of the council,” they said among 
themselves. ‘ He will know how to advise us in 
our plans for the town.” 

A great many people were passing, and all 
stopped to shake hands with the strangers. 
“How did you happen to come?” asked one. 

“ We liked the sound of your name,” answered 
the wise man, ‘‘ and decided it was just the place 
in which to bring up our children. No valley or 


town can be happy, of course, unless every one 
in it is trying to make it so, and we wanted our 
children to learn from yours how they do it.”’ 

“Will you come to our Christmas party?” 
asked a child. ‘It’s just beginning.” 

“ And afterwards,’’ said the councillors, “* you 
must let us entertain you in our homes. We 
shall be glad to show you around.” The visitors 
thanked them for their kindness, and joined the 
group going to the church. 

Now shouldn’t you think, if visitors couldn’t 
be there for Christmas itself, a day or two after- 
wards would be a good time to visit Happy 
Valley? So should I. 

But something seemed to be the matter. Per- 
haps it was because people had overeaten of 
Christmas dinners and Christmas candy, and in- 
digestion made them cross. Perhaps it was 
because everybody had been working so very 
hard to make Christmas merry, that, now that 
it was over, they were a little tired of being good 
and were letting themselves grow careless. Per- 
haps they thought there wasn’t anything to work 
for any more. Perhaps they had been getting 
so many presents that they had grown tired of 
bothering to say “‘ Thank you.’”’ Sometimes they 
even criticized the gifts which they had. Why, 
at the Christmas party, when a present was 
handed to one child he said, ‘‘ Aw, I don’t want 
this. Give me something else.” 


School A. Struck home. One child 
had said this at our Christmas party. 


The only thing another child said was, “Is 
this all we’re going to get!” 

In one house where the wise man and his family 
called, the floor was covered with new toys, but 
a child kept whining continually. ‘‘ Mother,” he 
would tease, ‘‘ what can I do now? I’m tired of 
playing with these. Mother, read to me!” 

The stranger children’s eyes were wide with 
surprise. They had each received only one new 
toy for Christmas, and it seemed as if they would 
never tire of playing with those. 

In another house there were two boys. The 
younger one accidentally broke the older one’s 
cart. The older one at once seized a new toy of 
his younger brother’s and purposely broke it into 
bits. “ There,’ he said, “‘ that serves you right.” 
And the visitors quickly left that house amid 
howls of anger and grief. 


76 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Down the street were two children quarreling. 

“You have no right to take my new snow- 
shoes,” one said. 

‘““ Mother said we could take turns,’’ answered 
the other. ‘‘ You can take my skiis.” 


‘“T dop’t want your skiis. You take off my 
snowshoes. You can’t have them.” 


**T can too.” 


Slap came the hand of one against the cheek 
of the other. 


Joun (unbelieving): That happened in 
Happy Valley? 


“You'll slap me, will you? Well, you just 
take that!’ (Slap, slap!) 

“That’s just the way those little boys on 
Orkney Street at home act,” said the stranger 
children. ‘‘ You know, the ones who haven't 
any father or mother.”’ 

The wise man looked questioningly at his wife, 
who nodded gravely. 


The next morning when the sun rose on Happy 
Valley and the town councillors woke up and 
began planning new ways to entertain their visi- 
tors, word came to them that the visitors were 
nowhere to be found. All trace of them had 
vanished in the night. No one had seen them 
leave, but the covered wagon had disappeared. 
What could it mean? Everybody had been so 
glad to have them come. It was a splendid 
family and would have been a great addition. 
And they had meant to stay; they had said so. 
At last a note slipped under the door of the store 
explained. The note thanked the Happy Valley 
people for their courtesy to the strangers, but 
said they found they had made a mistake. They 
had judged the town by its name, but they had 
found the very things in it which they had com- 
plained of outside — selfishness, quarrelsomeness, 
“slapping back.” It could be no happier than 
the place from which they had come, for the 
people in it were doing no more to make it so. 
The strangers were going away therefore, much 
disappointed, and left a good-bye for all. 

Well, how would you feel if you had been living 
in Happy Valley? The town council called a 
meeting at once. At first the citizens were angry 
at the wise man’s letter. 

“ He didn’t stay long enough to know what he 
was talking about,” they said. “ Certainly no 
town could have had a happier Christmas.” 


“But they didn’t come until after Christmas,” 
some one said. 

“The truth is,” said some one else, “‘ we had a 
happy Christmas because every one tried his 
level best to make it so.” 

“There has been a sort of slump ever since,” 
admitted one of the councillors. ‘I’ve noticed 
it myself.” 

“T shouldn’t wonder if we all grew a bit dis- 
agreeable,” said another. “I know I did. I ate 
too much for my Christmas dinner, and when I’m 
sick my wife says I’m always cross.” 

“We've been quarreling over our new toys like 
everything ever since we got them,” piped up 
some children. 

Almost every one in the room admitted that 
he had beeen ungrateful or selfish or unkind or 
cross. 

Well, what shall we do about it? ” asked the 
council. “We had a merry Christmas because 
everybody tried to make it so. But a happy New 
Year is different. It means not a day, but a 
whole year.” 

“We wish people a happy New Year almost 
without thinking,” spoke up Mr. Fairchild. 
“Perhaps we could think of a way to make it 
mean something.” 

There was a general murmur of approval, and 
the ideas came thick and fast. And before the 
meeting closed a new law had been passed, mak- 
ing ‘“ A Happy New Year” mean something. 

That is why, the day before New Year’s, pos- 
ters appeared in every public place. That is 
why, when people met each other and started to 
say, ‘‘ A happy New — ” or “ I wish you a hap —” 
they stopped themselves short, remembering that 
the greeting meant special work on their part. 
For this is what the whole poster said: 


IT SHALL BE AGAINST THE LAW 
TO WISH ANYBODY IN HAPPY VALLEY 
A HAPPY NEW YEAR 
without first deciding how you, yourself, can 


make the wish come true for the person, and 
then trying 


TO BRING IT ABOUT 


And that is why it meant so much when the 
Fairchild children said to their mother and 
father and when friends said to each other, ‘I 
wish you a happy New Year.” 


: 
: 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 77 


New Year Plans 

(After the story refer to the way the children 
saved time for their mothers in December.) 

Just for fun, think what it would mean to do 
that for a whole year. Think, for instance, how 
much time could be saved, if each day of the year 
you were prompt at meals, or minded the moment 
you were spoken to, or went to bed on time. 
(Put 365 on the board and imagine saving ten 
minutes each day. Let the children multiply, 
and divide the result into hours. Ask if they 
really thought their mothers liked being helped 
in this way; if they could think of any better way 
to help. Speak of leap year — when a whole day 
is given us.) Would it be possible, through the 
year, to give your mothers another whole day? 
How many minutes? How many minutes should 
we have to save each day to give mothers a whole 
extra day? Not quite four. How many for a 
two day gift? 

Would you like to go on helping and so really 
bring a happy New Year to your homes, and 
would you like some new device which will help 
you “check up” on yourselves? There is a 
place in the Bible where Paul, a follower of Jesus, 
reminds us that we often believe ourselves to be 
better than we are, and he says it is a good thing 
to prove to ourselves just how hard we are 
working, anyway. (Gal. 6:3, 4.) 

Have you ever seen health charts on which a 
child places a mark in a designated place each 
day if he has slept with his window open, brushed 
his teeth, etc.? Could we make or have made 
similar charts to prove to ourselves how much 
time we are saving during this year, for instance? 
On what things could we check ourselves? (Use 
the board and though putting down all the chil- 
dren’s suggestions, discuss the most important 
so the list will have only four or five. These 
should be in their common experience, like, — 

Promptness; going to bed on time; 

Minding at once; 

Being on time for meals; 

Helping at home.) 

Would these things bring for your families a 
happy New Year? How could we bring a happy 
New Year to our school grades? 

Norte: The repeatedly expressed wish of one 
child in School A that other members of his 
grade should share the class’ good times suggested 
the next project—a party for the two third 
grades represented in the class, with the teachers. 


The duties of host and hostess being a little vague 
in their minds, as proved by the party for the 
teachers, the leader welcomed this chance to 
show improvement. As this kind of a project 
would appeal to all children, no matter where 
situated, later programs will provide for it. At 
this time the leader could introduce the possi- 
bility of such a party. 

If the chart idea is taken up, either help the 
children to make their own individual ones from 
a pattern you will supply, or have them make 
temporary ones for a week, while permanent ones 
are being prepared. Take care that this checking 
up does not have the effect on the children of 
patting themselves on the back for having done 
a worthy deed, but rather of keeping continually 
before them their wish to be helpful at home. 

Plan a bird hike for the next weekday session, 
to take place on Saturday. As a “ starter” for 
giving their playmates a happy New Year, and 
acting as hosts, each child might invite one child 
or teacher. 

Report of School A 
Charts to Encourage Helpfulness at Home 

Leaver: One of Jesus’ friends wrote a letter 
once to some people he knew. He was trying to 
help them to be Christians. He told them it was 
a good thing to think over all they had done and 
test themselves, to see whether they were as good 
as they thought they were. (Read Galatians 
6:4, b, from the Moffatt translation: ‘ Let 
every one bring his own work to the test.’’) 
Sometimes we think we’re better than we are. 
If we had a way of keeping a kind of report card 
for ourselves, on these calendars, we could test 
ourselves, couldn’t we? Of course we might put 
down whether we had brushed our teeth every 
day or not. But the Happy Valley New Year 
law made me think what fun it would be for us 
to surprise our families by trying to give them a 
happy New Year all the year. What kind of 
things would give them a happy New Year? 

(Several suggestions. Children marked off the 
figures into squares and decided to check them- 
selves up on four things, by drawing lines through 
the four corners of the square. “ Helping at 
Home” was chosen for one corner, “ Better 
Children ” for another, “‘ Not quarreling ”’ for a 
third.) 

AnnE: When Barbara wants to play dolls and 
I want to play something else, why, I can play 
dolls with her! 


78 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Stuart: I know something for the other — 
Not getting into mischief. 

Leaver: Just what does that mean? 

SruartT (amazed at her ignorance): Why don’t 
you know, Miss Bradley? (Appreciative chuckle.) 
It’s like when you hang up a pail of water and 
when your father walks under it you pull a string 
and it spills on him! (Roars of laughter.) 

Leaver: But none of us would be doing that 
very often, would we? 

Fiorrie: Oh, it’s lots of things! Like when 
your mother goes down-town and you go into the 
pantry and steal things. 

Joun (disgusted): Say, what kind of people do 
you think we are? We don’t steal!” (‘ Getting 
into mischief ’’ was added for the fourth corner. 
Each child made a “ key”’ on the back of the 
calendar. ‘“ Better Children ’’ seemed vague, so it 
was interpreted to mean minding quickly. 

(For one child’s reaction to this see the first 
incident in the report on the Sixteenth Sunday.) 


Report of School B 


Children gave reports on the time saved for 
their mothers. One had been afraid to do too 


much for fear her father would think she was 
expecting pay. 

A very conscientious child was discouraged 
because she couldn’t think of any way of saving 
time for her mother, until, as her mother re- 
ported, she said plaintively one day, ‘ Oh, dear, 
I don’t help you at all, do I, mother?’ and her 
mother explained how by her thoughtfulness and 
quick obedience she was helping her all the time. 

Leader told two stories, “‘ I Love You, Mother ” 
and ‘‘ Happy Valley’s Happy New Year.” 

We made a scrap-book for one of our class ill 
with scarlet fever, and wrote the Happy New 
Year law in our books. During the work on the 
books, Louise came and took hold of the leader’s 
hand. 

Louise: Mrs. Long, did I send you a Christ- 
mas card? 

Leaver: No, dear; why? 

Loutse: I forgot to. I’m glad it’s not too late 
to wish you a Happy New Year. Before I came 
today and heard the story I thought it was too 
late, but now I know it isn’t! 

The calendar idea was suggested to this class 
later, but did not appeal. 


AT SCHOOL WITH 
THE GREAT TEACHER 


A SUNDAY AND WEEKDAY COURSE 


(IN THREE PARTS) 
Pela le Li 
JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH 


FOR CHILDREN APPROXIMATELY 
EIGHT YEARS OF AGE 


BY 3 
JEANETTE ELOISE PERKINS 
IN EDITORIAL COLLABORATION WITH 
FRANCES WELD DANIELSON 


EVERYDAY CHRISTIAN LIVING SERIES 


THE PILGRIM PRESS 
BOSTON CHICAGO 


Coryricut 1924 
: By SIDNEY A. WESTON a 


Printed in the United States of America 


CONTENTS 


FourTEENTH SuNDAY (J anuary) : f ; : ; 
New Year’s talk on prayer; Behavior on weekday hikes; New Year’s story, ‘‘ The 
Twelve Treasure-Boxes; Story, ‘“‘ How the Disciples Learned to be Great.” Reports 
on: “ The Beginning of a Project in F riendship;” “ Marking Charts;” “A Lost Oppor- 
tunity.” - 


FouRTEENTH WEEKDAY . : ; : , ; ; ; 
Winter Hike. Reports on: “ Exhibition of Temper;” ‘‘ Leader’s Meditations.” 


Firreenta Sunpay (January). , : : ; : : : 
Seasonal praise; Story, “The Greatest Animal;” Dramatization; Picture gallery. 
Report on “ Impromptu Dramatization.” 


- Firreenta WEEKDAY 
Party Preparations. 


SrxTEENTH Sunpay (January) . . ; ; : 
Making people happy; Incident, child radiating happiness; Story, ‘‘ The Magic Mask.” 
Reports on: “‘Isn’t It Really a Picture of Jesus;”’ ‘‘ Recognition of Self-Control;’ 
“Problem of Discipline; ‘‘ Comments during the Week;’’ “ Idea of Prayer which In- 
fluenced Future Programs.’’ 


SIXTEENTH WEEKDAY. ; : 
Continued Preparation for Party; Stories: ‘“ The Quails,” “‘ The Party.” 


SEVENTEENTH SuNDAy (January) ; : ; ; 
Seasonal worship; Discussion of party; Appreciation of “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus;” 
Story, “Jesus at a Party.” Report on “An Effort to Overcome Disorder.” 


SEVENTEENTH WEEKDAY , 
Party for Schoolmates. 


EicuTeents Sunpay (January-February) . : ' : 
Poem, “‘ When Jesus was a Little Lad; Conversation about J esus, childhood’s pattern; 
Poeans up on party; Stories: “The Children’s Playground,” “ Jesus in His Father’s 

ouse.”’ 


EIGHTEENTH WEEKDAY . ; : ; ; ; 
Story and Work: A Happy Valley Story, ‘* How the New Year Law Worked; Work. 
Reports on: “ Second Step of Project in Friendship;” ‘‘ The Magic of a Song.” 


NINETEENTH Sunpay (February). : ; ee 
Worship service based on ‘The Gentle Child of Nazareth;’ Picture study review; 
Story, “The Monk’s Bible; Correlated handwork. 


NINETEENTH WEEKDAY . 
Making Books. 


TWENTIETH SunDay (February) , . ; : ; 
Worship service on gentleness part of greatness; Note-book work; Picture study and 
blackboard illustration of Jesus’ spirit in our homes. Report on ‘“‘ Worship Service on 
Self-Control.”’ 


TWENTIETH WEEKDAY . . : : : , ; : 
Story and Work: A Happy Valley Story, ‘“‘ The Wise Man’s Pack ” (on prayer); Work 
on books. Reports on: “ Self-control;” ‘The School of the Great Teacher.” 


Twenty-First Sunpay (February) . ‘ ; ; : : ; ; 
Worship service on Jesus, childhood’s pattern; Composing a prayer; Stories: ‘‘ The 
Secret Power of Jesus,” ‘‘ How Jesus Used His Secret Power.” Report on ‘ Children’s 


Illustrations of Self-Control.” a 
il 


PAGE 
79 


85 


87 


90 


91 


95 


98 


101 


102 


107 


110 


113 


114 


115 


118 


iv CONTENTS 


Twenty-First WEEKDAY ; ; J , 3 . ; ; : : ‘ ‘ 
Story and Work for a Missionary Project; “ Story from the Wise Man’s Pack.” Re- 
port on “ Florrie’s Loss of Self-Control.” 


Twenty-Seconp Sunpay (February-March) . f : . , : : ; 
Use of original prayer; Dramatization revealing secret of Jesus’ power; Picture study 
and talk on prayer; Reports on: ‘‘ Quarantining;’ “ Making up for a Neglected 
Opportunity.” 


TWENTY-SECOND WEEKDAY . : ; : : : 
Story: A Happy Valley Story, ‘‘ From the Wise Man’s Pack.” Reports on: “ Blunders 
of Leader;” ‘‘ Work.” 


Twenty-luimep Sunpay (March) . ; . : : : 
Picture study and talk on ‘“‘ Thy will be done; Note-book work; Story suggesting 
“Thy kingdom come;” Story, “The Kingdom of Love.” 


TweENTy-THIRD WEEKDAY. Ma) ah? 
Spring Hike. Report on ‘‘ Preparing for a Hike and its Problems.” 


Twenty-FourtH Sunpay (March) . . : 
Seasonal worship; Kingdom of God made clear through pictures; Spartan legend 
of ideal kingdom; Story, ‘‘ A Man who Wanted to See Jesus.’ Report on “ Plans for 
Making Amends.” 


TweEnty-FourTH WEEKDAY . \ : ; ; : 
Three Alternatives: Hike, Program of Work or Study, or Planning a Spring Worship 
Service; Happy Valley Story, “ The Stocking Doll.” Report on “ Stuart and Florrie 
Make Amends.” 


Twenty-Firra Sunpay (March) . : : , , ‘ ; ; ; 
Praise service; Conversation; Poem, ‘* We Would See Jesus,” with old story; Mis- 
sionary pictures and song; Story suggestion, “ A Blind Man Who Wished to See Jesus.” 
eee on: ‘Checking up on the Hike;” “ Plan for Worship Services;” “‘ Revealing 

emarks.”’ . 


Twenty-Firta WEEKDAY . ; ; : : : , : 
Work, Instruction, Stories. Reports on: “ Profiting by Former Blunders;” “ Another 
Step in the Friendship Project;”’ ‘‘ Florrie goes into Quarantine;” ‘‘ Child’s Note Sug- 
gesting Next Program.” 


TWwENTy-Sixtu SunpAY (March-April) : : , : : , : 
Children’s original spring worship service; Picture gallery. Reports on: “ Sharing the 
Interest in Virginia with Primary and Junior Departments;” “ Florrie Again.” 


TWENTY-SIxTH WEEKDAY ; ; : : 
Work on Missionary Enterprise. Report on “ Forming a Council.” 


PAGE 
123 


125 


129 


132 


134 


135 


139 


143 


145 


146 


148 


—= oe 


Ee Oe 


—S oS ee ee ee 


——— Ve ee 


———s le 


TIME DIVISIONS OF SUNDAY SESSIONS 


Plan I. Four Periods 


First Departmental Period : : ’ : 10 minutes 
(Opening Service of Worship) 
First Class Period . : : : j 15 minutes 
(Classes Separated by Grades) 
Second Departmental Period . : : 15 minutes 
(Worship and Fellowship) 
Second Class Period 15 minutes 


(Classes Separated by erates 


Brief Dismissal 5 minutes 
60 minutes 

Plan II. Two Periods 
Departmental Worship Service : ‘ A . 20-25 minutes 
Class Period . \ : 30-35 minutes 


(Classes Separated by Grades) 
: ; : ; : 5-10 minutes 


Closing Service 


60 minutes | 
Plan II. Three Periods 
First Class Period . : : ; : ; ; 15 minutes 
Departmental Worship Period : ‘ ‘ : ’ 25 minutes 
Second Class Period : 15 minutes 
Brief Dismissal 3 : : , ; 5 minutes 
60 minutes 


Plan I is the plan followed by both experiment schools, and in outlining the program in this 
course. The same material may be used with a different time arrangement. 


REPORTS FROM EXPERIMENT SCHOOLS 


Children’s responses are noted where they actually occurred; other reports from Schools A 
and B, the two experiment stations, appear at the close of programs. 


FOURTEENTH SUNDAY 


January 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 

Conversation. When we say, “I wish you a 
merry Christmas,” or, “ I wish you a happy New 
Year,” it is like saying a little prayer. But God 
doesn’t answer prayers just because we ask him 
for things. He knows what is best for us before 
we ask him, but there are some things he cannot 
do without our help. Making our friends happy 
is one of them. We may pray, “ Please, God, 
make my mother happy,” but if we do something 
to make her unhappy, you see God can’t answer 
that prayer. It is when we say, ‘“ Please, God, 
make my mother happy,” and then try to please 
her that we have answers to our prayers at once. 

We cannot say, “ Please, God, feed all the 
hungry Armenian children,” and then forget all 
about them and expect God will answer that 
prayer just because we have asked him. He 
depends on people to plant seeds, and plough, and 
grind the wheat into flour, and others to buy it 
and send it on ships to those who need it. 

When the Japanese earthquake came people 
all over America prayed, ‘‘ Please, God, help the 
poor Japanese.” God could answer their prayer 
quickly, because the very ones who prayed gave 
money and food and clothes, and asked others to 
do the same thing, and soon great ship-loads of 
supplies were sailing toward Japan. God wanted 
the Japanese to be helped, but his children had to 
want it, too. He can do anything, if his children 
want what he wants hard enough to help him. 
And he can make this a really happy New Year 
for us all, if we all help him. 

Jesus gave us a rule for making the world 
happy. (Use “The Golden Rule,” from Songs 
for Little People.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Correlating Sunday and Weekday Ex- 
periences. (If the charts are used, get reports. 
If possible, plan for a bird hike for the next week- 


day session, and with the picture of Jesus “ go 
to school ” to him now to prepare for it.) 


School A. Jounn: Oh, I like that picture! 

LEADER: Sometimes we forget that we’re 
going to school to the greatest Teacher. 
Our last hike we did some things — 

Tina: I know; we used bad words. 


(Bring up the problems of the last hike and 
try to have them settled in advance for this one, 
something as follows:) 

Great Teacher, the last time we went out to- 
gether we ran across people’s lawns and climbed 
over a fence where we were asked to keep out. 
How can you help us to know how to act on our 
hikes? 

We shouldn’t like to have a class of ten or 
twelve strange boys and girls running over our 
lawns, or climbing a fence into a plot from which 
we'd asked people to keep out. Why, putting 
ourselves in the place of the other person is like 
Jesus’ rule for us, isn’t it, children? Let’s sing 
it — “‘ As ye would others should to you, so,’ 
Jesus said, ‘ to others do.’ ” 

We'll try to remember your rule, too, great 
Teacher, when we want to pick branches from 
other people’s trees. 


School A. LEADER: Great Teacher, 
when we went down that steep bank, the 
boys went ahead and cleared the path and 
helped those who found it hard. And 
Tina brought four apples and divided 
them among the others, never keeping a 
bit for herself. Was that following the 
rule? 

(Children referred to looked much pleased.) 

Leaver: Great Teacher, sometimes we 
forget that we are going to school to you, 
and use words you would not like. We did 
on our last walk. Will you help us to try 
to use language that you would not be 
ashamed of? 

Stuart (fo Frankie): Norton, you know 
you and I promised Miss Bradley we’d be 
good that time. 

FRANKIE: I know it. 
good! 

Stuart: We’ve got to remember better. 


I’m going to be 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


A New Year Story. 
THe TWELVE TREASURE-BOXES 
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 
ten, eleven, struck the Hall Clock. It was New 
Year’s Eve. Robert stirred in his sleep, but he 


80 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


did not wake. One, struck the Hall Clock, for 
half-past eleven. Still the boy did not wake. 
And then — was it a shadow, or was there really 
an old, feeble man with a long, white beard lean- 
ing over the bed? MRobert’s eyes opened gently. 

“‘T am the Old Year,” breathed the figure. “I 
have grown to love you, and therefore I open 
your eyes to see the gifts the New Year will bring 


’ 


you. 

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 
ten, eleven, twelve, struck the Hall Clock. 

Was it a moonbeam, or was there really a tiny 
form that slid in at the window and placed twelve 
shining treasure-boxes on the bed? Robert’s 
eyes were certainly open. 


*T will leave them with you unlocked for one 
hour,” chirped a child’s voice. ‘“‘ After that all 
but the first will be closed until its time comes. 
Learn how you shall use them.”’ With that the 
New Year disappeared. 


Robert sat up, rubbed his eyes and looked 
again. There, to be sure, were the twelve trea- 
sure-boxes, silvery and shining. 

He put out a trembling hand and opened the 
first treasure-box. Instantly his ears were greeted 
with the jingle of sleigh-bells and the shouts of 
coasting children, — “‘ Clear-the-lul-la!”’ To 
Robert’s amazement out from the treasure-box 
slid a particularly fine red sled he had seen in a 
store window, and had coveted. ‘‘ Come to me, 
Redbird!”’ he seemed to hear his chum Peter 
saying — Peter, who had also longed for the sled. 

“You're mine!”’ Robert insisted, pulling the 
sled toward him. At once the merry tune of the 
sleigh-bells changed into a clash, and the chil- 
dren’s laughter into sobbing. 

“Five minutes gone!” said a Voice, and the 
January box clicked shut. 

Robert lost no time in opening the second 
treasure-box. The lid sprung up like a jack-in-a- 
box, and a heap of valentines poured out. There 
was a glimpse of red, white and blue, and the 
sound of a band and soldiers’ feet. 


“Good!” cried Robert. ‘“‘ I shall probably be 
chosen school captain on Washington’s birthday, 
and Lincoln’s, too, and when we give our school 
valentines I expect to have the most.”’ 


No sooner were the words out of his mouth 
than the cupids on the valentines turned to imps, 
and with a “ Halt!” the so!diers stopped marching 
and the band was still. 


“Ten minutes gone!” said the Voice, and the 
February box snapped shut. 

Robert opened the third treasure-box rather 
soberly. A kite soared up to the ceiling. A 
March wind had come out with the kite, and it 
was all Robert could do to hold it by its string. 

‘“‘T shall not let you go,” said he, “for some 
other boy might get you. You are mine, mine, 
MINE!” At the last ‘mine’ the wind seemed 
to die down and the kite crumpled up and fell 
back into the little chest. 

It was quite two minutes before the Voice said, 
“A quarter of an hour gone!” and the March 
box snapped shut. 

In spite of his disappointment, Robert lost no 
time in opening the fourth treasure-box. He 
started back at the whir of wings. How had 
such a small box possibly held all the birds that 
flew out— birds red, blue, brown, black and 
yellow? The air was filled with their songs. 

“IT must have one of these birds for my own. 
Where’s a gun?” said Robert, feeling in the box. 

It was empty, but at the word “ gun” every 
song ceased, and the birds dropped back silently 
into it, one by one. 

“Twenty minutes gone!” said the Voice, and 
the April treasure-box snapped shut. 


JoHN (interrupting): He didn’t know 
how to use the gifts! 


Now you would think that by this time Robert 
would have known the trouble was with him and 
not with the treasure-boxes. But, no! when the 
fifth one opened with a rustling of tissue-paper, 
and out fell May baskets of all sizes, filled with 
candies and flowers, he stretched out his hand 
for the biggest, and of course they all shrank 
away. 

No sooner had the Voice said, ‘‘ Twenty-five 
minutes gone!’’ and the May box had snapped 
shut, than he opened the sixth and the air was 
sweet with roses. 

“ T'll gather a finer bunch than any other boy 
in school,” he said, “so that my teacher will 
think all the rest are lazy.” 

But as he touched them they withered, and 
their thorns scratched his hands. 

“* Half-an-hour gone! ”’ said the Voice, and the 
June treasure-box snapped shut. 

At last Robert really did begin to suspect it 
was something about him that spoiled the trea- 
sures. Carefully he opened the seventh box. 


ee a 


Ves Pee eee 


in * 


SY ee ee 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 81 


Whizz, bang! fire-crackers, rockets, Roman can- 
dles made the room brilliant. A flag waved. A 
band played. Robert did not reach for a single 
fire-cracker, or set off one of the tempting Roman 
candles that lay near. His eyes were on the flag. 
As the band struck up “ The Star-Spangled Ban- 
ner,”’ he rose and gave the pledge of allegiance. 
At the last word, behold! the flag changed from 
bunting to rows of red rubies and white pearls, 
and the stars, each to a glistening diamond. 
Then the Voice announced, “ Thirty-five minutes 
gone! ”’ and the July treasure-box snapped shut. 

Eagerly Robert opened the eighth little chest. 
Salt breezes blew. Surf rolled close to his feet. 
He plunged in, and was just about to call out, 
“ T'll beat you all to the raft!” when he heard the 
cry of a little boy, “ Please help me swim, oh, 
please!’ He turned straight about toward land, 
and each wave seemed a friend that pushed him 
along. He was smiling at the little boy’s laughter 
when the Voice said, ‘‘ Forty minutes gone!” and 
the August treasure-box snapped shut. 

The same good feeling was left when the Sep- 
tember chest snapped shut at the words, ‘‘ Three- 
quarters of an hour gone! ”’ for from it had fallen 
school books, which Robert had eagerly opened 
and which filled his mind with pleasant pictures. 
October’s treasure-box of nuts overflowed as he 
threw a handful to some squirrels which scurried 
back just as the cry of “‘ Fifty minutes gone!” 
closed the lid. 

Eagerly Robert opened the eleventh treasure- 
box. 

As he expected, a Thanksgiving dinner appeared 
and he began at once to eat a piece of turkey. 
But was it turkey? It had no taste at all. The 
cranberry sauce was bitter, and the pudding with- 
out sweetness. What was the reason? Surely a 
boy was not expected to give away his Thanks- 
giving dinner! Then he remembered hearing 
the first notes of a song of thanks, which stopped 
as he greedily took his first mouthful. 

“ Fifty-five minutes gone!” said the Voice, and 
the November treasure-box snapped shut. 

Robert hurried to open the last little casket, 
that not a second need be lost. It was so 
packed with toys ’twas a wonder the lid had 
stayed on. All sorts of Christmas gifts that a 
boy likes came out first, but Robert took no notice 
of them. He seemed looking for other things. 
His hand went out at last for a baby’s rattle, and 
again for a man’s gloves, and once more for a 


woman’s knitting-bag. When he spied a reading- 
glass he fairly snatched it, with a cry of, “ Just 
the thing for grandmother!” Then, glancing 
down, will you believe me when I tell you that he 
found all those gifts so perfectly suited to a boy 
lying in his lap! And it seemed to him that the 
angels of Bethlehem were singing and that the 
Voice came from the sky itself, as it said softly, 
“One hour gone!” and the December treasure- 
box snapped shut. 

One, struck the Hall Clock. Robert rubbed his 
eyes. Where were the twelve shining boxes? 
Where the New Year? 

“Tt was a dream, I guess,” he murmured 
sleepily, “but I hope Peter gets the red sled!’ — 
Frances Weld Danielson. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Introducing New Material. (Refer to the 
February treasure-box in the preceding story.) 
Why is February a patriotic month? Whose 
birthdays are in it? What makes people want 
to celebrate Washington’s and Lincoln’s birth- 
days? What made Washington and Lincoln 
important? 

(The following story has value for eight-year- 
old children, who often expect special privileges 
because of some fancied superiority, i.e., “‘ My 
father is rich;” ‘‘ My mother is on the school 


board;” ‘“‘My mother is the teacher’s best 
friend;” therefore: ‘“‘ Everybody ought to be 
especially nice to me;” “If I can’t have first 
choice, I won’t play;’’ “I should sit beside the 
teacher.’’) 

Story. 


How tae Discretes LEARNED TO BE GREAT 


(Bible references: Matt. 23:11; Mark 9 :33- 
35; Luke 22 : 7-14, 24-27; John 13 : 3-15.) 

The twelve disciples had been with Jesus for 
many months. A great deal had happened since 
the first four left their lake and their fishing to 
be with the Teacher. They watched their 
Teacher help people all day long. They learned 
from him how to do it themselves. They listened 
while he taught the crowds, and they learned his 
stories to tell to others who had not heard. They 
had even gone out themselves and worked among 
people, doing some of the wonder works that 
Jesus did. Then they had come back to learn 
more from their Teacher. 


82 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


But there were some things that the disciples 
couldn’t seem to learn, and this troubled Jesus. 
For instance, they all wanted to be Jesus’ favor- 
ites. They knew he loved them all, but each one 
wanted to be loved more than the rest. They 
thought that this would make them more im- 
portant. 

The people, even the disciples, called Jesus 
King, but they had a queer idea about his king- 
dom. In spite of all Jesus could say, they still 
thought it meant a throne and a gold crown and 
powerful soldiers. He couldn’t seem to make 
them understand that the kingdom he was 
working for was a world full of people loving each 
other, and being kind to each other, and helping 
each other. And that sort of a kingdom could 
be anywhere, couldn’t it? — without thrones and 
without crowns and without soldiers. 

Still they quarreled for first place. When Jesus 
sat down, wherever he was, they struggled to sit 
nearest him. You can imagine the kind of thing 
they did to try to make Jesus like them better 
and so set them ahead of the others. 


Stuart: I’d have done it, too. I don’t 


blame them. 


James and John thought they ought to be given 
special honor because their mother had made a 
trip to Jesus just to ask that her sons might have 
the two most important places. Judas and 
Philip considered themselves very important, for 
one was treasurer for the band and the other pro- 
vided their meals. Another was rich and per- 
haps he thought that made him greater than the 
rest. 

What could Jesus do to show them what it was 
that made people truly great? What could he 
do to show them the only way to win his love and 
praise and the approval of their heavenly Father? 
ts It was the time of a great holiday. Into Jeru- 
salem, for the Feast of the Passover, thronged 
men and women and children from all over Pales- 
tine. Families and friends made up groups to 
celebrate the feast together, and went from house 
to house trying to rent empty rooms for their 
particular supper parties. 

Jesus and his disciples had come, too, but 
stopped in a little village outside the city. They 
must have a room in the city in which to eat their 
Passover supper like the rest, and Jesus sent 
Peter and John into Jerusalem to engage one and 
make it ready. 


“You will see a man carrying a pitcher of 
water,” he said; “ follow him into the house and 
say to the master of the house, ‘ The Teacher has 
sent us to ask where is the guest-chamber where 
he may eat the Passover with his disciples?’ He 
will show you a large upper room furnished. 
Make it ready.” 

Peter and John did as they were directed. 
They found the house and the room. They pre- 
pared the table and saw that everything was 
ready, even to the pitcher of water at the door, 
the basin and the towel. 

For it was the custom in that country for 
people to wear, instead of shoes and stockings, 
low sandals which could easily be slipped on and 
off. 

School A. An oriental sandal made 
this vivid. 

These they always left outside as they entered 
a house, for the roads along which they traveled 
were rough and dusty, and they did not want 
the mats to be soiled. Their feet would be 
stained, too, and hot and tired at the end of a 
journey. 

As soon as a guest entered a house a servant 
hastened to him, poured cool, refreshing water 
into a basin, and bathed the hot, dusty feet of the 
traveler, drying them on a towel. That is why 
a basin and towel were always to be found ready. 


Joun: Just what we do when we go bare- 
footed in the summer. 


In the evening Jesus and his disciples walked 
from the little village where they were stopping, 
into Jerusalem. Peter and John led them to the 
place where they had prepared the feast. It had 
an outside staircase which led to their upper room, 
so the company did not need to disturb the mas- 
ter of the house at all. 

Shouldn’t you think that the disciples would 
have been so proud to be among the great Teach- 
er’s special friends that that would have been 
enough honor for them? And shouldn’t you 
think that after being with Jesus for months and 
months and seeing how he never thought of him- 
self, but always of other people, they would have 
learned to do the same thing? 


School A. John’s interruption, “‘ He 
was always busy thinking of other people,” 
made it unnecessary for the leader to com- 
plete the sentence. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 83 


But they had not learned, for even as they 
walked into Jerusalem and up the outside stairs 
of the house, different ones were wishing that 
they might be pointed out, not as Jesus’ special 
pupils, but as his favorites, the most important 
ones in the band. Two of them were cousins of 
his — that should set them away ahead of the 
others, they thought. And so it was with them 
all. Each one had a different reason for feeling 
important, but that was the sort of thing which 
filled their minds. 

At the top of the stairs. they stopped and 
slipped off their sandals. There was the water, 
the basin and the towels, but there was no servant 
to bathe their feet. They had walked two miles 
along a stony road; their feet were tired and 
dusty. Jesus went in and sat down. No one 
had bathed his feet. When there was no servant 
to do this it fell upon the youngest or the one of 
least account in a group. But when each dis- 
ciple was thinking of how much account he was, 
naturally not one of them felt like doing the work 
of aservant. No one offered to bathe Jesus’ feet, 
although they loved him. They never even 
thought of bathing each other’s. Each felt him- 
self above it. It would look as though he thought 
he was not important — and that was what all 
their dispute had been about, which of them was 
the greatest. 

What could their Teacher do? He had told 
them many times what kind of people were 
counted great with God. He had told them 
many stories which showed them. But they for- 
got so quickly, or else were slow to understand. 

He suddenly stood up. He would not reprove 
them; he would not tell them another story. He 
would act a story. 

He threw off his outside robes. Now he looked 
like a servant. The disciples stopped quarreling 
to watch him. What was their Teacher doing? 
Jesus fastened the towel around his waist. What 
was he going to do? It couldn’t be — 

He lifted the pitcher and poured water in the 
basin. Not one disciple spoke. Suddenly they 
forgot whether they were great and important or 
not. No one said anything more about having 
first place. Jesus, their Teacher, their Lord and 
Master, was washing their feet! Jesus was doing 
the work of a servant! How do you think they 
felt, they, who were too proud to do this even 
for Jesus? Do you wonder that they were 
ashamed and that Peter even drew away and said, 


“You shall never wash my feet!” But Jesus 
went right on, until he had bathed and dried every 
foot with the towel. Then he put his cloak on 
and sat down again. The disciples had stopped 
quarreling. At last they had learned the lesson 
their Teacher had been trying to teach them. He 
had given them an example. They knew now 
how to tell a person who is really great. And now 
when Jesus said, ‘‘ Whoever would be great among 
you shall be your minister; whoever would be 
first among you shall be your servant,” they 
understood. The one who counts for most will help 
most. Nobody ever counted for as much as Jesus 
did, and nobody ever helped so much. 

(After the story show a picture of the Last 
Supper — the disciples as they looked when all 
the quarreling was over. Connect with the 
communion service. 

(Ask the children if they have noticed any one 
in school, on the playground or at home, who 
might have been “‘ going to school ”’ to Jesus — 
who is serving and ministering to others. Let 
them name over the “greatest” people they 
know.) 


Report of School A 


The Beginning of a Project in Friendship 

Before the session John and Stuart gleefully 
told the rest of the class of the toy automobile 
they'd seen at the leader’s house. When the 
leader said that it came as an invitation to motor 
to Virginia in June, immediate interest in her 
trip was aroused. (See Eighteenth Weekday for 
the next step in the project.) 


Marking Charts 

All were eager to tell how many corners were 
marked off. ‘Two who weren’t present yesterday 
wanted calendars. 

ONE OF THE CHILDREN: I’m going to make a 
chart for you, Miss Bradley, so I won’t quarrel 
here, and so I’ll mind you. 

Exinor (who had been bringing her younger 
sister lo the class): Martha wouldn’t put anything 
on her calendar last night. My mother says this 
class doesn’t do her as much good as it does me. 

Anne: Oh, dear, I quarreled this morning and 
I felt terribly! 

Leaver: What a pity! Then that corner 
can’t be marked. 

ANNE (ruefully): I know it, —the very first 
day, too. 


84 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Leaper: Everybody forgets, Anne. Even 
Jesus’ disciples forgot, but they kept on 


trying. 
A Lost Opportunity 


Communion lengthened the church service, so 
early comers found no adult in the Primary room. 
Miss Fairfield left the service to quiet them. If 
the leader had gone herself, she would have found 
three of her own class on a rampage; could have 
brought them into the service, to show them what 
it was, and how the communion table which they 
had noticed on their tour of inspection of the 
church was used. Both the story for today and 
the picture would have meant more. 

Stuart and Tommy ran to her to own up. 


Sruart: Miss Bradley, it was us that made the 
noise. : 

Leaver: Oh, I’m sorry! If you could have 
heard it in the church! We were having com- 
munion, and it is always very quiet then. 

Stuart: What’s communion? 

Leaver: Every two months the members of 
the church remember the last supper Jesus had 
on earth, and pass bread and grape juice around, 
as they did then. Would you like to go into the 
church for it the first Sunday in March, when we 
celebrate it next? 

Stuart: Yes. (Ashamed.) And we kept Miss 
Fairfield from it! ; 

(See how this was followed up the Twenty- 
second Sunday.) 


FOURTEENTH WEEKDAY 
Winter Hike 


To (1) hunt for birds’-nests or cocoons; (2) 
observe winter birds, and seed food supply; (3) 
discover tracks of animals in snow. 

(See Sharp Eyes, Gibson; Nature Magazine, 
winter numbers, American Nature Association, 
Washington, D. C.; Handbook of Nature Study, 
Comstock.) 

What kind of a hike this may be should be 
determined before starting, that the leader may 
have specimens or photographs of the objects to 
be sought to show, and that the class may know 
what to look for. 

It may be possible and natural to recall nature 
verses from the Bible, such as Matt. 6 : 26, “‘ Be- 
hold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, 
neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and 
your heavenly Father feedeth them.” Jesus, the 
great Teacher, loved the out-of-doors and was 
always drawing illustrations and stories from the 
ways of birds and animals and growing things. 
Suggest finding nature verses to bring the follow- 
ing Sunday to read as part of the worship service. 
In this way the class can share its hike with the 
rest of the department. 

Before the children separate, give them type- 
written references to such verses, for their mothers 
to help them find before Sunday, when each one 
will bring his own Bible with the reference marked. 
The children maly also suggest songs for the 
service. Suggested nature texts are: 

Birds, Ps. 50:11 a; 104:12; Matt. 6 : 26. 

Ice, Job 38 : 30; Ps. 147 : 17. 

Rain, Deut. 28 :12; Job, 5:10; Ps. 147: 7, 8; 
Isa. 44:14 b; Joel 2 : 23. 

Snow, Job 37 :6; Ps. 147:16; Isa. 55:10. 

Spring, Ps. 147: 18; Song of Sol. 2: 11, 12. 

Sun, Moon and Stars, Gen. 1:16; Ps. 74:16; 
Ps. 136 :7, 8,9; Eccl. 11:7. 

Winter, Ps. 74:17 b. 


Report of School A 
Exhibition of Temper 


Twelve children started out on a hike for 
cocoons. A long search resulted in only one, con- 
taining a dried-up pupa. Stuart captured it, and 
at great pains secured a bird’s-nest. Florrie 
called him a mean thing because he carried the 
nest carelessly. In a temper he flung it down 
and started off across the fields, telling us how he 


85 


hated us all, while the children stared after him 
in wonder. Before long he began to creep back, 
whittling a stick as he went, and calling furtively 
to the other boys. John and Tommy Firth, 
fascinated, joined him. The rest paid no atten- 
tion until Florrie began to act strangely. 

CHILDREN: They’re after you, Florrie! 

FiorrieE: I know it, I’m not afraid of them. 

JOHN (rejoining us): You’d better get behind 
Miss Bradley, Florrie; they’re coming! 

Stuart (bearing down on us armed with a large 
branch): You hold her, Firth, while I beat her! 

Leaver (seizing Florrie): T'll hold her for you, 
Stuart; come on. (As Stuart came on) But 
I’m not holding her for you to beat her. You 
may beat me instead. 

She put herself between the two, and seized 
Stuart by the coat. He was in a passion of 
anger, and to be thwarted just as his prey was 
within reach was too much. He swore repeatedly. 
Leader held on. He tore and fought and yanked, 
but the hold was firm. He began to strike the 
leader. 


ANNE (flinging herself between them): You 
sha’n’t hurt Miss Bradley! 
Stuart: Oh, sha’n’t I? Well, (dealing a 


terrible blow on Anne’s chest) take that! 

Leaver: Did he hurt you, Anne? 

ANNE (sturdily): No. 

Stuart, absolutely beside himself, gave his 
switch to Tommy to guard while he attended to 
the business at hand. His blows fell like a bat- 
tering-ram upon leader’s arm. 

Stuart: Get out of my way! 
beating; get out of my way! 

LEADER: Stuart, you can’t hurt me, no matter 
what you do to me. You are only hurting your- 
self. 

Stuart (between blows): I don’t care if I am! 

Leaver: But I do, Stuart, and your mother 
does and God does. I don’t know what Florrie 
said to you, but three times now in your anger 
you have forgotten yourself so that you have said 
the very worst thing you could have said! (Ad- 
dressing whole group) Children, we can never go 
on another hike if things like this are going to 
happen. Just think of its being in our class. 
We have said we wanted to go to school to Jesus. 
Only last Sunday we took his picture, and called 


It’s Florrie needs 


86 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


him our Teacher, and asked him to go with us on 
this hike and help us not to do or say anything 
that he would not like. And the most dreadful 
thing of all has happened on this hike. Children 
are hating each other and willing to hurt each 
other. We have even forgotten we have the 
greatest Teacher for our friend and helper. Let’s 
go home now. Tommy, put down the stick. 
Stuart, you had better go that way; it’s nearer. 

Stuart (sullenly): Come on, Firth; we’ll think 
of something else to do. 

Tommy (who had been standing stock-still, help- 
lessly): I can’t. 

Tommy stood his ground and resisted Stuart’s 
persuading all the way home. Stuart did not go 
the short way; he preferred to follow us at a 
distance and nurse his temper. 

Cuitp: He’s picking up stones to throw, Miss 
Bradley. 

LEADER (coolly): Let him throw them. He is 
too angry to aim straight. Walk ahead of me. 
If he hits anybody, I'll be the one. 

Stuart (at intervals): Look, Firth, there’s a big 
one! Throw that at ’em! 

Tommy: Naw! 

LEADER (as Stuart came too near to be comfort- 
able): Stuart, I asked you to go home the other 
way. Since you didn’t, please keep away from 
us. We don’t want you near us. 

Sruart: Well, you needn’t worry. I'll never 
come to Sunday school again nor near that old 
church for six years — maybe seven. 

Leaver: I hope you won’t. Nobody wants 
you around. We'll be glad to see Stuart Black 
back, though. 

SruarT: Stuart Black! What’re you talking 
about? I’m Stuart Black! 

Leaver: Oh, no, you’re not! Stuart Black has 
gone away. He left the minute you came and 
took his place, away back on the hill. We'll be 
glad when he comes back. 

Rutu: I wish he would come back. I like 
Stuart Black. 

Cuxp (shouting): O Miss Bradley, come quick! 
Tina’s found a cocoon. (Wild excitment. Stu- 
art, coming near to look, appeared as gentle as a 
dove.) 

LEADER (whispering to girls nearest her): You 
watch; I think Stuart is coming back. 

CHILDREN (delightedly): Stuart’s coming back! 

Sruart (frying to appear nonchalant, taking the 
dried pupa from his pocket): Wonder if this old 


thing’s really dead! Guess I’ll throw it away, 
now we've got a good one. 

CHILDREN: Goody, Stuart’s come back! 

Leaver: Hello, Stuart! 

Stuart (later): Miss Bradley, can’t I carry the 
cocoon now? (No reply.) Miss Bradley, can’t I 
carry the cocoon? Miss Bradley! Miss Bradley! 
Oh, my goodness, you might as well talk to a 
stone! 

Leaver: What, Stuart? 

Stuart: Can’t I carry the cocoon? Every- 
body else has had it, and I haven’t even had a 
chance to look at it! 

Leaver: No, you remember you were busy 
when it was found. 

Stuart (after a moment): Can’t I carry it 
now? 

Leaver: Do you really think you have be- 
haved so well on this hike that you should have 
favors? (torn between two opinions, then remember- 
ing how quickly he ‘‘came back’’) Yes, Stuart, you 
may carry it for coming back to us. But please 
don’t ever go away again. 

Stuart walked all the way home with leader. 

LEADER: Stuart, where did you ever hear those 
words you used? Didn’t you know that no one 
who is a Christian and loves God uses his name 
like that? Didn’t you know it is called swearing, 
and if the children’s mothers knew that that 
happened in our class, children might not be 
allowed to come? 

Stuart (humbly): I didn’t know, Miss Bradley. 
I got it from some French kids down the road. 


Leader’s Meditations 


1. Should Florrie have gone scot-free? 

2. Should I have said, ‘ You other boys, are 
you going to stand by and see Anne, a girl, 
hurt? ”’ No, if the boys had entered, it would 
have degenerated into a personal fight. 

3. I might have prevented Stuart’s blows by 
grasping the upper part of his arms from behind. 
As it was, every blow he struck fanned his anger. 

4. I failed to bring home to the group the 
seriousness of loss of self-control. Wouldn’t it 
have been crystallized in their minds if they had 
discussed whether or not Stuart should be allowed 
the privilege of carrying the cocoon? 

(To see how this incident was followed up, refer 
to reports of Fifteenth Sunday, Fifteenth Week- 
day, Twenty-Third Weekday, Twenty-Fourth 
Weekday.) 


FIFTEENTH SUNDAY 


January 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(The third grade shares with the department 
the experiences of the weekday sessions; birds’- 
nests, cocoons and other spoils of the hike. 

(A praise song is followed by Psalm One Hun- 
dred and Thirty-Six, which has been used before 
responsively. 

(Let those who have brought nature verses 
read them, the department responding after each, 
“His loving kindness endureth forever.’ Or a 
song response may be used.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


From the Old to the New. (Children retell 
“How the Disciples Learned to Be Great.” 
Leader follows this with a fable.) 


THE GREATEST ANIMAL 

“I am going to be great,” said the giraffe, and 
he grew and grew, till he was the tallest of the 
animals, but not the greatest. 

“I am going to be great,’’ said the lion, and he 
roared and raged and devoured man and beast, 
and became the strongest of the animals, but not 
the greatest. 

“T am going to be great,”’ said the frog, and he 
swelled up until he burst. 

““T am going to be great,’’ said the mouse, and 
he went to live in a king’s palace, but he was not 
great. He was the smallest and most hated 
creature there. 

“IT am going to be a friend to man,” said the 
horse, and he carried man about and plowed his 
field and did his work. And behold, he was 


great! For he who serves others is the greatest. 
— Frances Weld Danielson, in Little Animal 
Stories. 


Alternative, a Dramatization. (Some of 
the children will represent the disciples who saw 
Jesus’ act of service. Others will represent 
Roman soldiers who do not know Jesus or his 
“way.” The soldiers will boast of their greatness 
and power. The disciples will hear them and tell 
them the story which showed them what true 
greatness is. See Report of School A.) 


87 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Repeat the poem, “The First Children’s 
Day,” used in Fourth Sunday, second depart- 
mental period, and use again the great Teacher 
dramatization suggested in Third Sunday, second 
departmental period. Base this upon the chil- 
dren’s needs.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Making a Picture Gallery. (Talk about great 
people the class have known, or about children who 
have shown signs of greatness, according to Jesus’ 
definition. This will lead to more stories of 
Jesus serving. 

(From a pile of pictures let the children select 
and hang up those which show Jesus serving, or, 
like ‘‘ The Good Samaritan,” are Jesus’ illustra- 
tions of people doing “ great’ deeds. At odd 
moments, both on Sunday and weekday, they 
will enjoy studying these pictures. There will be 
constant reference to them in the programs, and 
many times if pictures are in sight, the leader will 
find unexpected uses for them. 

(Burlap running along one side of the room 
makes a good background for such an exhibition. 
A strip of Upson board stained and attached to 
the wall is excellent. 


(As the children are choosing their pictures 
today, sing, or have an assistant sing, the song, 
** Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,”’ found in Worship 
and Song and other hymnals. Following is the 
entire hymn, all of which, except the last stanza, 
to be kept for Easter, may be sung today.) 


TELL ME THE STORIES oF JESUS! 


Tell me the stories of Jesus 
I love to hear; 
Things I would ask him to tell me 
If he were here; 
Scenes by the wayside, 
Tales of the sea, 
Stories of Jesus, 
Tell them to me. 


1 Used by permission of the Sunday-school Union. 


4s 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


First let?me hear how the children 
Stood round his knee; 

And I shall fancy his blessing 
Resting on me; 


leader as spokesman; Disciples represented by 
third grade. Speeches impromptu.) 

Roman Sotprer: Get out of my way, sirs! Do 
you not see we are soldiers, mighty soldiers of a 


Words full of kindness, powerful emperor? 
Deeds full of grace, Discrete: Well, we’ve got a King ourselves. 
All in the love-light Roman Sorprer: Ah, but what is your King 


Of Jesus’ face. 


Into the city I'd follow 


compared with the mighty emperor? 
DiscipLE (FRANKIE): I tell you, our King is the 
greatest King there is! 


The children’s band, Roman Soupter: Is that so? We have never j 
Waving a branch of the palm-tree heard of him; he can’t be so very great, can he? } 
High in my hand; (Colleagues sniff.) 5 
One of his heralds, Discrete (Tommy, rolling up his sleeves): Come bs 
Yes, I would sing on over and we'll show you who’s greatest! bs 
Loudest hosannas! LEADER: You see we didn’t understand. Re- 4 
Jesus is King! member how Jesus showed his disciples who was ¥ 
greatest? You’re pretending to be disciples. 4 

OPTRA Ran a cnoni@okavondés Always his disciples were anxious to tell others q 
Hoe a hs ie ? about the new meaning Jesus had given to words. P 
eens aiesiicatiin uy ferent We're pretending to be Roman soldiers, who ; 


On Galilee! 
And how the Master, 
Ready and kind, 
Chided the billows 
And hushed the wind. 


Tell how the sparrow that twitters 
On yonder tree, 

And the sweet meadow-side lily 
May speak to me. 

Give me their message, 
For I would hear 

How Jesus taught us 
Our Father’s care. 


Show me that scene in the garden, 
Of bitter pain; 

And of the cross where my Saviour 
For me was slain — 

Sad ones or bright ones, 
So that they be 

Stories of Jesus, 
Tell them to me. 


— W. H. Parker. 


: Report of School A 


don’t know any better, but really think that the 
people who are the greatest have the largest 
armies and maybe can kill the most. Would 
Jesus’ disciples have fought to show who was 
greatest? 

CHILDREN (rolling down their sleeves): No. 

LEADER: Think how they would have told 
what they knew. 

Roman Souprer: We are the strongest, the 
mightiest, the cruelest people on earth. Are we 
not great? j 

DiscrPLE (ANNE): That isn’t greatness. 

Roman Souprer: Indeed! Be very careful 
what you say. We are soldiers of a powerful 
emperor. We might have you killed. 

DiscrpLes: We wouldn’t care. They killed 
Jesus. He was greatest. 

Roman Sowprer: Greatest? What do you 
mean? How was he great? I never even heard 
of him, did you? 

OTHER Roman Sotprers: No. 

DiscrpLE (FRANKIE): I tell you he’s the great- 
est King of all! 

Roman Sotpier: But tell me about him. Had 
he a great army? 

Discretes: No, he hadn’t any army. 

Roman Soxtprer: No army? Then I suppose 


Ra SELES periwhghare Hogi ban 


foes ASS 


ty 


Impromptu Dramatization 
(Used with the department instead of the class DiscreLe: He was kind. 

because of absence of teachers. Parts of Roman Roman Soper (puzzled): But kindness doesn’t 

Soldiers taken by first and second grades with make a great king. 


he must have been very strong and powerful. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 89 


DiscrpLe (FLorrigz): He wasn’t exactly a king. 
He didn’t wear a crown. 

Roman Soxprer: No crown? But how could 
people tell that he was a king if he wore no crown 
and had no army? 

Discrete (FRANKIE): He had little spikes 
coming out of his head. (Leader knew he was 
thinking of a halo, but could not stop to explain. 
See report in Sixteenth Sunday.) 

Discrete (Joun): He helped people. 

Roman Sotprer: But what makes you think 
helping people makes a great man? We never 
help others. It is for others to help us. And if 
they don’t they are sorry for it. We are power- 
ful. Why, only yesterday an old woman got in 
my way and I threw her down in the road. And 
because I am a soldier of the emperor she dared 
not say a word. That is how great we are. 
(Smaller children looked horrified at first but got 
back into their parts. Assumed haughtiness again.) 

DiscipLe: Thatisn’t great. It’s helping people 
makes you great. 

Roman Soxpier: But wherever did you get 
that idea? 

Discretes: Jesus told us so. He’s our King. 
He heals people when they’re sick. He helps 
them all sorts of ways. 

Roman Sorprer: But this idea of greatness — 
how did he make you understand such a queer 
idea? 

Discrete: He got down on his knees and 
washed our feet. 

AnoTHer: And we hadn’t washed his. 
just washed our own. 

AnotHeER: No, we didn’t even wash our own; 
we were too proud to do it. 

Roman Soxpier: But that was the work of a 
servant! How would that show he was great? 

Discrete: That’s just it, — the one that’s the 
greatest helps most. 

Roman Sorprer: Well, this is certainly all very 
interesting. Would you tell us more about this 
great King of yours sometime? 

Discretes: Yes! 

LEADER: We'll not be Roman soldiers and 
disciples any more. I want to tell you something. 
It sounded dreadful, didn’t it, when the soldier 
said he’d knocked down an old woman, and 
boasted of it? But that’s just what does happen 
in countries where people think greatness depends 
on armies and strength. 

Once I visited in a country like that, and the 


We 


reason I spoke about the old woman was because 
I saw that very thing happen. The streets were 
crowded with people lined up to see the emperor 
pass. It was almost impossible to get through 
the crowd. Soldiers were everywhere, keeping 
back the line which pressed over the edge of the 
sidewalk. One poor old woman with a big load 
on her back was trying to struggle through the 
throng of people. She had no time to stop to 
watch a procession; she was bent on going some- 
where with her load. Finally finding it so diffi- 
cult to worm her way through the crowd, she 
managed to reach the edge, and was walking along 
in the gutter when a great, husky guard came 
along. He was angry that she should be walking 
where he was going back and forth keeping back 
the line of people. She was in his way. With 
one strong arm he reached out and knocked the 
old woman out of his way, and went on angrily, 
without caring at all that she had fallen. Nota 
person dared move to help her to her feet again. 
Every one was terrified by the soldier of a power- 
ful emperor. He might do the same to them. 
The guard would not have cared if he had killed 
her. It would have shown how strong he was. 

You have been hearing stories about Jesus, and 
his kindness and his helpfulness and his love. 
You haven’t heard much about his getting angry, 
have you? Did people ever hurt him? 

CHILDREN: Yes, they hit him and they killed 
him. 

Lreaper: Was he angry at that? (Silence.) 
He could be angry though. He was angry when 
he saw strong men treating others unfairly, and 
cheating them. He was awfully angry. He 
even used a whip. Do you think if he had seen 
what I saw, he would have been angry? 

CHILDREN: Yes! 

Leaver: Sodo I. I think he would have been 
terribly angry. I think his eyes would have 
blazed and nothing on earth would have kept him 


from trying to help that woman. He wouldn’t 
have been afraid of any soldiers. And his anger 
would have counted for something. It is fine to 


be able to feel anger — for another person. That 
was the difference between Jesus and the soldier. 
The soldier was angry for himself. Jesus’ anger 
was for wrongs done to others. 

(During the moments that followed, through 
the stir of giving out the papers, Stuart sat per- 
fectly still gazing straight ahead of him into 
space.) 


FIFTEENTH WEEKDAY 


Party Preparations 


(See Thirteenth Weekday, note foot of page 77.) 

A party for the schoolmates of the class may 
seem like a big undertaking, especially if the chil- 
dren come from more than one school. Even 
limited to third grades, the number may seem 
appalling. The class should be made to see at 
once that it cannot possibly take place without 
every one’s doing all he can to help make it a 
success. Such a project offers a splendid chance 
to work toward ideals of hospitality, cooperation 
and loyalty to our group standards. 

Preparation for such a party will require 
thought. It must be carefully planned to be en- 
joyed by all. 

It will call for leadership. The group itself will 
be the natural leaders and upon them the respon- 
sibility for the success of whatever games are 
chosen will rest. There can be no hanging back 
on the part of any one, when a game is started. 
Recalling a recent party, let the children criticize 
their own manners and actions, if there was con- 
fusion or disorder, and plan how they, as hosts, 
can make this one orderly. Discuss what they 
can do to make their guests feel at home. Sug- 
gest paper caps as souvenirs. 

Preparation for a party where souvenirs are 
given will require patience and perseverance, for no 
matter how simple, such a quantity of souvenirs 
as will be necessary will require work. Start 
making caps today. 

When the children grow restless play some of 
the games which will be played at the party, and 
which it will be necessary for them to know in 
order to lead the others. Introduce such circle 
games as Rig-a-jig-jig (Ice-Breakers, Edna Geis- 
ter), which needs a piano accompaniment; prac- 
tise figures like the snake dance in the grand 
march, (Ice-Breakers) and such floor games as 
Maze Tag (Games for the Playground, Home, 
School and Gymnasium, Bancroft). 


Reports on Party Preparations 
School A 
Friorriz: I don’t want to have a party for our 


grade. JI don’t want to be a good sport. 
Joun: I don’t, either. It’s too much work. I 
like Our Class. 


Leaver: Well, of course, if everybody doesn’t 
help, we can’t possibly have it. It’s too big a 
thing for just a few. 

OTHER CHILDREN: We want it! We'll help! 

Fiorrte: I’ll help, too. I do want to be a 
good sport. 

Joun: I don’t. 

LEADER: But since all the others do, we can 
have it without you, John, and you can go home 
while we’re getting ready! 

Leaver: Did you like the Christmas party? . 

ANNE: Some of it. 

Tina: I liked all of it. 

Joun: I didn’t. I acted like the dickens, run- 
ning around and not playing the games. 

Sruart: So did I. I’m going to help in this 
one. 


Practised Rig-a-jig-jig and Maze Tag. John 
didn’t join in until it was suggested that he go 
home, as this was part of getting ready for the 
party. He stayed and got in the game. 

Leader read aloud the first chapter of Johnny 
Blossom, (Poulsson), as it brought in the ques- 
tions of fighting and reparation, as well as the 
conflicting meanings of greatness — muscle versus 
kindness. 

Stuart: I thought we were going to make 
caps. I’m tired of listening to a story! 

School B 

Planned party for entire third grade of the 
church school. While making caps leader told 
“The Party” and “ The Quails,” (both printed 
at the end of Sixteenth Weekday). 


oe 


SIXTEENTH SUNDAY 
January 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD. 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Let the period be given over to praise to God 
for the people with whom we work and play, for 
whom we can plan good times. Let the prayer 
be that we may find more and more friends for 
whom we can make a happy new year.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Making Vivid Past Stories. (Speak of the 
charts and ask how they are progressing.) 


School A. The majority were keeping 
them. Stuart had marked every day but 
one “no quarreling.” 

Joun: Miss Bradley, I tried to pick a 
quarrel with Lawrence and he wouldn’t 
do it. 

Leaver: Lawrence, how perfectly fine! 
That way you kept two people from it. 

LAWRENCE (proudly): I haven’t quar- 
reled a single day since we began. 


(Ask the children if anything they are doing is 
making the new year happier for their families. 
Fancy what a happy new year it must have been 
for those people back in Jesus’ time and country 
who had a chance to meet him. 

(Let the class pretend to be a group of such 
people, meeting and comparing notes. Each 
represents some person helped by Jesus. Each 
begins, “It is a happy new year for me be- 


99 


Cause. ———— 


School B. Children preferred to speak 
of their own experiences rather than to go 
back to the time of Jesus, or to pretend they 
were other people. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(After singing suggest that there is a very 
special thing children may do which will make 
the people with whom they live happy.) 

A child went into a store one day. She did not 
know there was anything unusual about her face, 
that there was anything to notice. An old man 
stopped her and tipping her head up to look into 
her eyes, he said, “‘ My child, you don’t know how 


91 


much prettier you could be, and how much hap- 
pier you would make every one you met, if you 
didn’t scowl so.” 

The child was surprised. The man was a 
stranger, and at first she did not like what he had 
said. She did not even know she had been 
scowling. But now as she left the store she knew 
that at least she wasn’t smiling. Suddenly, just 
for fun, she smiled. And as she smiled something 
happened. A little puckery feeling left her fore- 
head. Her forehead felt a little lonesome without 
the pucker. Was it possible that the reason it 
felt lonesome now was that usually she wasn’t 
smiling, but was actually scowling most of the 
time? 

She decided to keep on smiling, and to her sur- 
prise she felt quite happy inside. Another old 
man came down the street. The child smiled up 
at him. He gave her back such a cheery, happy 
smile that it made the child almost laugh. This 
was very amusing; she decided to keep on. So 
she did. All the way up the street she smiled 
at people and they smiled back. What I am 
going to tell you now you will never believe, I 
know. But this is a true story. 

As the child went through her own gate two 
friends of her mother’s came down the steps and 
passed her on the walk. She smiled up at them 
because by now she almost had the habit of 
smiling. But it was what she heard them say to 
each other that was so surprising and seemed too 
good to be true. 

‘“ What a sweet face that child has!” one said 
to the other. “It makes you cheerful just to 
look at her. She must be a real bit of sunshine 
in the house.”’ 

“IT know it,” the other said, ‘“‘ and I used to 
think she was growing up with a cross expression!” 


Frankie: My mother calls the little girl 
downstairs a ray of sunshine, because she’s 
always happy. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Material. “ He that ruleth his spirit (is 
better) than he that taketh a city.” What do 
you suppose that means? Here is a story about 
a prince who found out. 


92 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Story. 
Tue Macic Mask! 


There was once a great and powerful prince. 
He had hundreds of soldiers in his army, and with 
their help he had conquered vast strips of country, 
over which he ruled. He was wise as well as 
brave, but, though all men feared his iron will 
and respected his strong purpose, no one loved 
him. As he grew older, he became lonely and 
unhappy, and this made him sterner and colder 
and more severe than ever. The lines about his 
mouth were hard and grim, there was a deep 
frown on his forehead, and his lips rarely smiled. 

Now it happened that in one of the cities over 
which he had come to rule was a beautiful] princess 
whom he wished to have for his wife. He had 
watched her for many months as she went about 
among the people, and he knew that she was as 
good and kind as she was beautiful. But because 
he always wore his armor and his heavy helmet 
when he rode through his dominions, she had 
never seen his face. 


The day came when he made up his mind that 
he would ask the lovely princess to come and live 
in his palace. He put on his royal robes and his 
golden coronet; but when he looked at his re- 
flection in the glass he could see nothing but what 
would cause fear and dislike. His face looked 
hard and cruel and stern. He tried to smile, but 
it seemed an unnatural effort and he quickly gave 
it up. Then a happy notion came to him. 
Sending for the court magician, he said to him, 
“* Make for me a mask of the thinnest wax so that 
it will follow every line of my features, but paint 
it with your magic paints so that it will look kind 
and pleasant instead of fierce and stern. Fasten 
it upon my face so that I shall never have to take 
it off. Make it as handsome and attractive as 
your skill can suggest, and I will pay for it any 

‘price you choose to ask.” 

“This I can do,” said the court magician, “ on 
one condition only. You must keep your own 
face in the same lines that I shall paint, or the 
mask will be ruined. One angry frown, one cruel 
smile will crack the mask and ruin it forever; 
nor can I replace it. Will you agree to this? ”’ 

The prince had a strong will, and never in his 
life had he wanted anything so much as he now 
wanted the princess for his wife. ‘‘ Yes,” he 


1 From The First Book of Religion, by Mrs. Charles A. Lane. Used 
by permission of The Beacon Press. 


said, ““I agree. Tell me how I may keep the 
mask from cracking.” 

“You must train yourself to think kindly 
thoughts,” said the magician, ‘“‘ and, to do this, 
you must do kindly deeds. You must try to 
make your kingdom happy rather than great. 
Whenever you are angry, keep absolutely still 
until the feeling has gone away. ‘Try to think of 
ways to make your subjects happier and better. 
Build schools instead of forts, and hospitals in- 
stead of battleships. Be gracious and courteous 
to all men.” 


So the wonderful mask was made, and when the 
prince put it on, no one would have guessed that 
it was not his true face. The lovely princess, in- 
deed, could find no fault with it, and she came 
willingly to be his bride in his splendid palace. 
The months went on, and, though at first the 
magic mask was often in danger of being de- 
stroyed, the prince had been as good as his word, 
and no one had ever discovered that it was false. 
His subjects, it is true, wondered at his new gentle- 
ness and thoughtfulness, but they said, * It is the 
princess who has made him like herself.” 


The prince, however, was not quite happy. 
When the princess smiled her approval of his for- 
bearance and goodness, he used to wish that he 
had never deceived her with the magic mask. At 
last he could bear it no longer, and, summoning 
the magician, he bade him remove the false face. 

“Tf I do, your Royal Highness,” protested the 
magician, ““I can never make another. You 
must wear your own face as long as you live.” 


‘“‘ Better so,’ cried the prince, “than to de- 
ceive one whose love and trust I value so greatly. 
Better even that she should always despise me 
than that I should go on doing what is unworthy 
for her sake.” 


Joun: I bet his face looked just like the 
mask! 


Then the magician took off the mask, and the 
prince in fear and anguish of heart sought his 
reflection in the glass. As he looked, his eyes 
brightened and his lips curved into a radiant 
smile, for the ugly lines were gone, the frown had 
disappeared, and his face was molded in the exact 
likeness of the mask he had worn so long. And, 
when he came into the presence of his wife, she 
saw only the familiar features of the prince she 
loved. 


ye ee eee ee ee 


ee 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 93 


Joun: I knew that’s the way it would be! 


(Look at picture of Jesus and ask why we love 
his face.) 


Report of School A 
**Isn’t It Really a Picture of Jesus? ” 


Leaver: What is it that makes us like this 
picture? 

Au: It’s Jesus. It shows how he looked. 

Leaver: It’s the way the artist thought he 
looked. 


Joun (sfartled): Isn’t it really a picture of 
Jesus? 

Leaver: No one knows exactly how Jesus 
looked, John. But many artists who loved him 
have painted him as they thought he looked. 

Joun (almost in tears): Oh, then I don’t like it 
any more! 

Leaver: But, John, it isn’t because he had a 
certain kind of hair and eyes that we love him, 
is it? Why do you other children like the pic- 
ture? (General vague feeling of perplexity and 
dissatisfaction.) Why do you like him? Because 
he looked a certain way? 

CurpREN: No, because he was kind. Because 
he was good. Because he helped people. 

ANNE: Because he made us and gives us our 
food and makes everything grow. 

LreapER: God does that, yes. 
Son, had God’s spirit in him. 

Joun (bitterly): Couldn’t they have taken any 
pictures of him so we’d know just what he looked 
like? 

Leaver: But, John, Jesus lived hundreds of 
years ago, before there were such things as kodaks. 

JoHN (impatiently): Well, weren’t there any 
drawers? Couldn’t some one draw his picture? 

LEeapeEr: Perhaps they did, but if there were 
such pictures they were lost, it was so long ago. 
But all through these years people have felt the 
need of pictures of him, just like you, John; so 
they have tried to think how he might have looked, 
and painted pictures of him. And Frankie, 
don’t you remember that last Sunday you said 
Jesus had gold spikes coming out of his head? 
He hadn’t really, but look at all these pictures. 

Stuart: This one has an orange. 

Leaver: You see the painters wanted to make 
him different from others and didn’t know how. 
So they always put a light around his head. 
Sometimes it was a glow, sometimes gold marks. 


And Jesus, his 


ANNE: But he was different. 

Exinor: He must have looked different. 

Leaver: If you tried to paint his picture, how 
would you show that he was different? 

One: I think the light was in his face. 

AwnotHerR: He’d have kind eyes. 

AwnoTHER: He’d be helping some one. (Lead- 
er’s query: Would it be better to use for our 
“Teacher” picture one showing him helping?) 

Recognition of Self-Control 

Leaver (fo Tommy): I’ve been waiting to tell 
you, Tommy, how proud I was of you on the 
hike, when you wouldn’t join Stuart. That was 
“going to school,’’ you know. 

Problem of Discipline 

Disorder in changing classes has been growing. 
Also the noise during class periods. Leader 
called boys’ attention to this. 

Boys: Why do you pick on just us? You 
don’t say anything to the girls. 

Leaver: The girls were not making the noise. 

FRANKIE: Come on, boys, remember that day 
we promised Miss Bradley we’d be good? Cut it 
out now! 

By the second class period resolutions were 
forgotten. After the session the other teachers 
complained bitterly, and plead for old-fashioned 
discipline, citing the case of a child who had been 
punished by a public humiliation. Leader ob- 
jected to that type of discipline, but admitted 
the need of better order for the sake of the group. 

Stuart suddenly emerged from behind a screen. 

LEADER: Stuart, come over here a minute. I 
didn’t know you were still here. But since you’ve 
heard what we’ve been saying, maybe you can 
give us some help. (Stuart’s head went down.) 
Don’t look so ashamed, Stuart; it isn’t you alone. 
We're all to blame, I most of all, because I 
haven’t made you see how selfish we’ve all been 
not to think about other people’s rights. I 
didn’t call you to blame you. We really want 
your help. (Head came up!) What can we do? 

Stuart: We can be quiet. 

LEADER: Yes, it’s all very well for you and me 
to decide that we can be quiet, but that doesn’t 
help the rest of the group to see. How can we 
make them want to be quieter, too? 

Assistant: Couldn’t you boys get together 
and talk it over and make some rules? 


Stuart: Yes, we could. 
LeapER: And all together we'll talk it over 


94 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Saturday, so that there need never be another 
Sunday like this. And can’t we meet, we teachers, 
during the week and discuss new ways? 

Opinions offered by various people: (1) “I 
think you ought to give them a lesson;” (2) 
““T never should send a child home. I was sent 
home from Sunday school once, and I never 
forgot it. Ive always felt the teacher was un- 
fair. There were lots of others just as bad as I 
was!’’ (3) “ The children themselves ought to 
get together and decide what to do.” (4) ‘“‘ Sun- 
day school is only an hour long, and children 
should leave their spirits outside.” (5) ‘‘ When 
I was young I always approached Sunday school 
with awe.” (6) “ Next Sunday take the whole 
hour if necessary to teach them the proper way of 
behaving.” (7) ‘‘ Answer only those who hold 
up their hands.” (8) “They ought to have a 
separate room. Their voices are loud and they 
all seem to talk at once.” (9) “ Why don’t you 
tell more stories? They’re quiet enough during 
a story.” (10) “It ought to be possible to com- 
bine free expression and consideration of others.”’ 

(See Sixteenth Weekday and Seventeenth Sun- 
day, Report of School A.) 

Comments During the Week 

Anne’s Moruer: Anne’s been a perfect angel 
lately. She helps me in all sorts of ways. I 
can’t find enough things for her to do. Her 
father comes home tired and she rushes to get 
his smoking-jacket for him. Of course, she’s 
thoughtful anyway. It’s partly that, but this is 
a new enthusiasm. 

Leaver: I wonder if it is something we started 
in the class. When did it begin? 

AnneE’s Mortuer: A little after Christmas. 
I’ve forgotten just when. There’s something she 
and Ruth began doing just then, which they’re 
keeping a secret from me. They go off by them- 
selves every night and whisper together before 
they go to bed. 

Leaver: What does Anne say when she comes 
home from the class — or from hikes? 

AnneE’s Moruer: Generally that the boys were 
naughty! She was terribly upset when Stuart 
Black hit you that day! 

Anne (in bed that night, to leader): Come here, 
I want to whisper something. When can J show 
mother our calendars? I told her I had a secret. 

LEapER: Why, any time, dear. The “ money”’ 
had to be kept secret for a Christmas present, 
but you can show her this any time. 


Anne: Well, I’ve kept it up so far, and Ruth’s 
too. She won’t do hers unless I do mine, so I 
have to anyway. 


Awnne’s Moruer (a few days later): You had a 
terrible time Sunday, didn’t you? 

FLorrie’s Moruer (on the alert): Was Florrie 
naughty? 

LEADER: She was the only one of the class who 
was absent! 

Fiorrie’s Motuer: Oh, yes, she didn’t go. 
I’m rather glad. But how she does love that 
class! I’ve never been able to get her to go 
anywhere regularly, and when Saturday comes I 
could no more keep her away! And little things 
keep coming up all the while which I know are 
the result of your class. She’s doing something 
now; she’s keeping a secret, but she tells me a 
little. Last night she said, “‘ Mother, I guess 
you'll have to help me about this. Have I been 
a good girl today? Have I minded promptly? 
I haven’t quarreled with you, have I? ” 

A Child’s Idea of Prayer which Influenced 

Future Programs 


Fiorriz’s Moruer: I can see how your teach- 
ing is showing. The night of the fire (Florrie’s 
father’s store was threatened) she was in bed with 
me, and I said, “Oh, dear, I wish I could do 
something!’’ Florrie said, “We can pray. I 
don’t have to do it out loud, mother. God knows 
our thoughts.” After a little while she said, 
“There, mother, I said it over three times.” 
The next morning when we went past the store 
she said, ““ My prayer was answered, wasn’t it? ” 
So she didn’t lose her faith. 

LEApER: I don’t believe she got that from the 
class. I should never dare teach just that kind 
of faith in prayer. Supposing the next block had 
gone? She'd have lost it. 

Fiorrie’s Moruer: But it didn’t! 
lucky? 

LEADER: I’ve been trying to show them that 
God depends on people to answer our prayers. 

Fiorrie’s Moruer: Florrie’s already begin- 
ning to worry about next year. She says, 
‘““ Mother, do you think we can go on with Our 
Class next year?” 

(For teachings on prayer see Twentieth Week- 
day, Twenty-First Sunday; Twenty-First Week- 
day, Twenty-Second Sunday; also Tina’s re- 
sponse, Twenty-Fourth Weekday.) 


Wasn’t it 


SIXTEENTH WEEKDAY 


Continued Preparation for Party 


Appropriate stories to tell today: For co- 
operation, ‘The Quails;” for comradeship, 
“The Party’ (both printed at close of this 
chapter). 

Invitations: Decide on date, guests and form 
of invitations —to children and their teachers. 
Suggest asking the guests to contribute something 
toward the entertainment, such as charades. 

Souvenirs: Finish caps or other souvenirs. 

Program: Put entire program on the board, for 
instance: 

Greetings of guests; showing where to put 
wraps 

Presentation of caps 

Formation of circle for game 

Game, Rig-a-jig-jig 

Formation of double line facing leader, for 
grand march 

Grand march, alternating couples going to 
right and left, coming down in columns of fours, 
then eights, when they will be in right formation 
for next game 

Game, Maze Tag 

Snake dance, columns of eights gradually be- 
coming the single line of the snake dance, forms 
one large circle for game 

Game, Jacob and Rachel 

Count off one, two, one, two, for game 

Game, Race (relay race formation) 

Boys get chairs and arrange them facing piano 
and platform 

Charades, pictures, group singing 

Class passes pop-corn balls 

Children, row by row, get wraps and say good- 
bye to hosts at the door 

Program Essentials: (1) A good pianist who 
will play for any musical games, for the group 
singing, and send the children out to march music. 
The music committee should get such a pianist, 
give her the program and explain what is wanted, 
telling her the date and time of the party. (2) 
A “blinder ” is needed for the game Jacob and 
Rachel. The “property man” should see that 
this and any other game properties are on hand. 
(3) The committee on arrangements should come 
early and see that there is a place prepared for 
wraps to be left, and should engineer the placing 
of chairs in orderly rows after the game called 
“Race.” (4) The refreshment committee will 


95 


either solicit or order and attend to the delivery 
of the refreshments. 

Have the program typewritten on cards for 
each child. This not only familiarizes them with 
the order of events, but gives them a sense of re- 
sponsibility in carrying out the program as 
planned. They will feel immensely important to 
be able to take their programs from their pockets 
at the party, while the guests are ignorant of 
*‘ what comes next.”’ 


Report of School A 


LAWRENCE: I’m not going to play unless you 
do what I want! 

LEADER (laughing): Can’t you just hear the 
President of the United States saying, ‘“‘ I’m not 
going to run this country unless you do what I 
want? ”’ 

CHILDREN (chuckling): Wouldn’t we make nice 
rulers? 

Class made out program of games, practised 
these and a grand march dance. They wasted so 
much time, however, that they had to take caps 
home to finish. 

The disorder was so great that leader sat down 
and solemnly told them what criticisms had been 
made of their behavior. She took the blame her- 
self. Children bitterly resented this, insisting, 
“ Tt’s not your fault. You tell us not to holler, 
and we holler! ”’ 

STruarT: Yes, and when I heard ’em talkin’ to 
you like that last Sunday I wanted to come out 
and say, ‘‘ You big dumb-bells, it’s not her fault, 
it’s ours!” 

Leader talked about importance of self-control. 
On the board was the verse, ‘‘ He that ruleth his 
spirit is better than he that taketh a city.” 
Marion caught sight of it and read it aloud. 
Leader unwisely continued. 

Joun: I wish you’d talk about something in- 
teresting! 

Leader took a calendar and showed how the 
addition of a big red C in the center of the figures 
would hereafter stand for self-control, at home, 
in class, at school. 

Stuart: I’m going to the doctor’s and get 
something for my throat, so I won’t talk so loud! 

Joun (during talk about order on Sunday): Let’s 
surprise em tomorrow! 


96 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Report of School B 


We planned to have party Valentine’s Day. 
Make valentines as souvenirs. Practised games 
and talked about the importance of all playing. 

Howarp: If there isn’t enough ice-cream to go 
around, we will go without. 


Tue Quarts } 
A LEGEND OF THE TATAUA 


Ages ago a flock of more than a thousand quails 
lived together in a forest in India. They would 
have been happy, but that they were in great 
dread of their enemy, the quail catcher. He 
used to imitate the call of the quail, and when 
they gathered together in answer to it, he threw 
a great net over them, stuffed them into his 
basket, and carried them away to be sold. 

Now one of the quails was very wise, and he 
said, ‘‘ Brothers, I’ve thought of a good plan. In 
future as soon as the fowler throws his net over 
us, let each one put his head through a mesh in 
the net and then all lift it up together and fly 
away with it. When we have flown far enough, 
we can let the net drop on a thorn-bush and 
escape from under it.”’ 

All agreed to the plan, and next day when the 
fowler threw his net, the birds all lifted it together 
in the very way that the wise quail had told them, 
threw it on a thorn-bush and escaped. While the 
fowler tried to free his net from the thorns, it 
grew dark, and he had to go home. 

This happened many days, till at’ last the 
fowler’s wife grew angry and asked her husband, 
“ Why is it that you never catch any more quail? ”’ 

Then the fowler said, “‘ The trouble is that all 
the birds work together and help one another. If 
they would only quarrel, I could catch them fast 
enough.” 

A few days later one of the quails accidentally 
trod on the head of one of his brothers as they 
alighted on the feeding ground. 

“Who trod on my head? ” angrily inquired the 
quail who was hurt. 

“Don’t be angry, I didn’t mean to tread on 
you,” said the first quail. But the brother quail 
went on quarreling, and pretty soon he declared, 
“T lifted all the weight of the net; you didn’t 
help at all.” 

That made the first quail angry, and before 


1 From Ethics for Children, by Ella Lyman Cabot. Used by per- 
mission of and by special arrangement with, Houghton Mifflin Com- 
pany, the authorized publishers. 


long all were drawn into the dispute. Then the 
fowler saw his chance. He imitated the cry of 
the quail and cast his net over those who came 
together. They were still boasting and quarrel- 
ing, and they did not help each other lift the net. 
So the hunter lifted the net himself and crammed - 
them into his basket. But the wise quail gath- 
ered his friends together and flew far away, for 
he knew that quarrels are the root of misfortune. 


THe Party 


“There comes Helen,” said Mrs. March. 

As she was sitting with her back to the window, 
it certainly was not her eyes that told her. No; 
it was cries that.grew louder and louder as a girl 
with tears rolling down her cheeks came up the 
piazza steps. 

“What is the matter?’ asked the mother, as 
she lifted Helen on ker lap. 

‘* They never asked — me — to the — par — ty. 
Oh, dear me! ”’ she said, shaking with sobs. 

“Whose party? ” 

“Daisy’s and Fred’s. It’s Saturday. They 
asked all the others in my room except two 
Italian boys and me.” 

** Maybe it was a mistake.” 

“No, it wasn’t. I heard them say to that 
bashful new girl, ‘ You'll have a good time. 
Helen won’t be there!’ Oh, dear me! ” 

Brrrr, rang the telephone bell. 

Mrs. March came back from answering it with 
a puzzled expression. 

“Helen,” she said, ‘‘ Daisy’s and Fred’s 
mother telephoned an invitation to their party.” 

“Oh!” said Helen, and her sobs stopped. 
Then she asked, ‘‘ Did she say they wanted me? ” 

““No-o. She just said they left you out, and 
of course you were on the list.” 

Helen Icoked so much like crying again that 
her mother proposed they make some lemonade, 
but she kept wondering what there was about her 
child that made her unwelcome at a party. 

The next day Mrs. March visited school, and 
at recess she stood at a window and watched the 
children play. The first game was Tag, and 
Helen could not be caught. She did not seem 
to be running very fast, either. Mrs. March 
watched closely. How did it happen that every 
child who got between Helen and the one who was 
It was caught? One almost tumbled, another 
stopped short, and the new and bashful girl fell 
flat. Mrs. March had seen Helen put out her 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 97 


foot and trip her. Then there was a shout as 
Helen was _ touched. “You're It! Good 
enough! You're It!” 

No, I’m not,” said Helen. 
fair.” 

“You were touched. You're It.” 

*“T shall not be It! ”’ cried Helen. 

Just then the school bell rang, and the children 
came in, but Mrs. March had seen enough to 
show her why Helen was not wanted at parties. 

After supper she asked her to play croquet. 
As Helen was trying to get her ball through a 
wicket her mother jostled her, so it went around 
the edge. 

“Why, that was your fault, mother,” said 
Helen. 

Mrs. March only laughed and took her turn. 
She missed her wicket, too, but she played again. 

* 'That’s not fair, mother,” said Helen. 

“It’s as fair as you played at recess,” said Mrs. 
March. ‘“ When I saw you trip up that shy little 
girl and refuse to be It, I knew why Daisy and 
Fred didn’t want you at their party. I’m asked 
to help at the party, and I shall expect my little 


“That wasn’t 


girl to play fair and be as polite in the games as 
she is in school.” 

Saturday and the party came. 
was Blindman’s Buff. 

“T’ll be It,” said Helen, the very first thing, 
and she was so funny groping about, and so slow 
guessing the child she caught, that all the children 
laughed at her, and she laughed the loudest. 
When the bashful girl had been It a long while, 
Helen let herself be caught, and Daisy squeezed 
her hand and said, “I’m so glad you came, 
Helen! ”’ 

And when the same bashful girl asked to play 
The Farmer in the Dell, Helen started to say, 
‘“T hate it,” but she stopped after I, and said 
instead, “‘ I will.” 

A happy mother and a happy girl went home 
together afterwards. It was still an hour before 
bedtime. Mrs. March laughed and said, “ If 
you will play croquet with me, dear, I promise 
to play fair and as politely as you did at the 
party.” 

‘“‘T had just a lovely time,” said Helen, and 
ran to get the mallets. — Frances Weld Danielson. 


The first game 


’ 


SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY 
January 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 

(Use praise songs, such as “ All Things Bright 
and Beautiful,’ and conversation about winter 
wonders —the beauty of frost crystals on the 
window, the formation of snow crystals. Refer 
to Bible nature verses of Fifteenth Sunday, 
showing pictures to illustrate and letting the 
children respond with, “His loving kindness 
endureth forever.’’) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Correlation with Weekday Session. (Write 
on the blackboard children’s ideas about what 
makes a good party and discuss them.) 


School A. “Ice-cream and cake.” 
“Candy.” ‘All the children joining in 
the games.” ‘‘ Everybody being good.” 


Once a little girl said, ‘‘ Today I was fussing, 
and then I thought, ‘ Nobody likes a little girl 
who is fussy all the time,’ so I saved myself from 
being.”’ Did she show self-control? Think how 
at a party you can show that you are big enough 
to control yourselves. Will you all want to play 
all the games? But can youd Will it be hard 
not to show off, and act as though you owned the 
whole church? Can you “save” yourself from 
doing these things? Can people control their 
actions as well as their expressions? 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 

(Use pictures to help the children appreciate 
the first four stanzas of ‘‘ Tell Me the Stories of 
Jesus.”” Have the words on the board or type- 
written so that all can sing it at the close. If 
the third grade has already learned the song, they 
may help the rest of the department to learn it, 
leading them in singing.) 


School B. The children told the story 
of each stanza, instead of using pictures. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Material. We have been talking about 
what makes a good party. Some said, “A good 
time,”’ some said, “* Ice-cream.” 


98 


Sometimes we go to Jesus to find the answers 
to questions. 


School A. John turned and stroked 
the picture that he said he wasn’t going to 
like any more. 


What do you think he would say about a 
party? I think I know, for there is a story in 
the Bible about Jesus at a party. 

Story. 
JESUS AT A PARTY 

(Bible reference, John 2 : 1-10.) 

It was just at the beginning of his going about 
and teaching. He had already chosen some of 
his disciples. Mary was invited to a wedding 
feast in a little town near Nazareth. It was 
called Cana. Jesus was there, with his friends. 
They too had been asked to the party. In that 
country it was the custom to serve at all parties 
rich wine made from the juice of grapes, but at 
this feast the wine gave out unexpectedly. There 
was not enough to go around! You can imagine 
how the people who were giving the party felt. 
It would seem to the guests that they had not 
been careful to provide enough. Wouldn’t you 
feel badly if you invited a great many people to 
your house for a party and then found you 
hadn’t enough refreshments to go around? How 
uncomfortable you would be, — and your guests 
would feel just as uncomfortable! You would 
all wish that you hadn’t had a party at all. 

Now Jesus knew that no one feels uncomfort- 
able at a successful party. Everybody is com- 
fortable and happy. When his mother came to 
him and told him that the wine had given out, 
Jesus did what he was always doing, which was 
to put himself in the place of other people; this 
time, of those who were giving the party. He 
knew just how distressed and unhappy he would 
feel if he were one of them, and how he would 
wish there was some one to help him out. “As 
ye would others should to you,” you know he 
said, *‘ to others do.” 

He knew very well what he would want in 
their place. And he did what he could to get it 
for them. I don’t know how he did it, but the 
story says he changed enough water into wine to 
go around among the company. It was one of 
those wonder works, or miracles, that only he 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 99 


could do. After that every one, guests, hosts, 
as well as his mother and he, were happy and 
comfortable again, and there was nothing more to 
spoil any one’s good time. He never missed a 
chance to help, did he, whether he was at a party, 
or traveling along a road? 

Conversation. That is why I think I know 
what he would say if we asked him now how we 
could make our party a success. I don’t believe 
he’d say it depended on the number of people 
who came, or what kind of refreshments might be 
served. Refreshments don’t make a_ party. 
It’s what we can do for our guests that makes the 
party. 

Just now we all feel as if we’d do everything we 
can to make our party a success. We want to 
show all our friends that we have something pretty 
fine in our class, that we know the very best 
ways to have good times. But there may be 
moments when some of us forget. Is there any- 
thing we could have in the party room to remind 
us that our class is going to school to the greatest 
Teacher of all? Let’s hang his picture on the 
wall, and when some one forgets, and happens to 
look toward me, I will be standing by the picture 
to remind you. Would that help? No one 
outside the class will know what that means, 
but we'll know. 

(Perhaps the children will suggest something 
else. Possibly the Golden Rule song could be 
played. Take their suggestions. Close the ses- 
sion with a prayer for help to make the party a 
success.) 


School A. See report on Seventeenth 
Weekday for device adopted. 


Report of School A 
An Effort to Overcome Disorder 


The problem of disorder necessitated a change 
of program. A long departmental period for 
discussion was succeeded by one short class 
period. 

The leader stayed out of church to be ready for 
early comers. She quietly told each child to take 
off wraps, look at the pictures in the corner, 
choose two and tack them to the screen. They 
were all as quiet as could be, possibly because of 
hushed tones in which leader was speaking, but 
more probably because of Stuart’s grilling them 
privately, and yesterday’s class. Stuart had 
left last week’s session to find John on the street. 


He sailed into him as if John was the only offender, 
and left him more or less dazed. Through the 
week he saw most of the others, telling them that 
the leader wasn’t going to teach any more. To 
their exclamations, “She isn’t! Why?” he 
replied, “‘ Because we acted so.” 

LrapER (when he told her): You’ll never know 
how near you came to the truth, Stuart. The 
first of the week I felt as though I really had 
better stop teaching. 

Stuart: Well, I told ’em that, anyway. 
That’s what made ’em behave today! 

JOHN (before session): You don’t hear anything 
out of me today! 

Tina: Miss Bradley, I been thinking about 
what you said. I had it on my mind all day. 

Rutu (flinging arms around leader’s neck): 
I’m sorry I acted so yesterday. 

AnnE: My mother told me some things. She 
told me to be good. I’m going to use my self- 
control. 

FLornriE: My mother told me, too. 
going to be noisy today. 

Stuart (at close of session): I feel much more 
happier today, Miss Bradley. It’s better when 
we're good. 


I’m not 


The Departmental Period 


Quieting Music. (Children took seats as 
quietly as mice.) 

Call to Worship. “I was glad when they 
said unto me, Let us go into the house of Jehovah.” 
** This is God’s house, and he is here today.” 

Conversation. We say that so often we for- 
get what it means. The verse said, “I was 
glad.”” God wants us to be glad in his house. 
Some of us come to it on Saturday and have a 
very good time, and since there is no one but: 
ourselves to disturb, play noisy games. 

It is God’s house on Saturday as well as Sun- 
day. But Sunday is God’s day. Not one class 
but many come to worship him on Sunday. We 
worship him with songs, and prayers, with talk 
about him and sometimes by just being quiet. 
There are some churches where there is no sermon 
at all. People go and just sit quietly thinking 
about God. And then, if some one feels like 
saying something about how good he is to us, he 
says it and sits down and thinks again. God’s 
house is the place to think about God especially, 
isn’t it? 

In the big room, when the people first come in 


100 


the pianist plays this song (leader sang it), “ The 
Lord is in his holy temple, let all the earth keep 
silence before him.” 

It reminds them all where they are, and that 
it is easier to worship in silence than in noise and 
confusion. 

Sometimes this department is very noisy. 
Last Sunday it was. Other people were dis- 
turbed. It isn’t fair for a few to come to a place 
which belongs to a great many, and do only what 
they feel like doing themselves. 

I’m going to put down on the blackboard 
what we do here, from the time we come until we 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


go. And you tell me how we can do these things 
better. (Children gave a detailed list of possible 
improvements, and agreed to follow them out.) 
And if we forget, what will remind us? (Chil- 
dren’s suggestions: soft music; when the talk 
grows loud, some one whispering; leader separat- 
ing noisy children; sending offenders home after 
a warning — to help, not punish them.) 

Tommy: Say that verse, — that one about 
ruling your spirit. 

Prayer-Song. 

March to Classes. 


SEVENTEENTH WEEKDAY 
Party for Schoolmates 


Report of School A 
Final Preparation 


In the morning leader met the girls’ com- 
mittees. They brought twice the necessary 
number of completed caps. They received their 
programs, and wanted to rehearse each part. 
Leader told ‘‘ The Quails.”’ 


LEADER: Supposing we should forget that we 
are hosts. 


Girt: Oh, but we won’t! 
Leaver: But we might! 
by our picture remind us? 


Girts: No! 
be looking. 

Leaper: Today will give us a great chance to 
earn a big red C for our calendars. I know 
(makes deaf and dumb letter C high in air). Would 
this help us to remember? 

Girts: Yes! Yes! 

Early in the afternoon leader met boys’ com- 
mittees, distributed programs, emphasized their 
responsibility, and spoke of earning the C for 
their calendars. All were perfectly sure the 
party would be a success. 

LeapER: But supposing one forgets? Is 
there anything I can do to remind you? 


Would my standing 


If you’re in a fight you wouldn’t 


FRANKIE: But we won’t forget, Miss Bradley. 
It will be a nice party. 

Leaver: The girls voted to have me make the 
deaf and dumb C for “ control.’”’ Do you like it? 

Boys: That’s great. Do it for us, too. 


(The popcorn arrived.) 


LEADER (discovering John and Lawrence gorg- 
ing themselves): Boys, why did you come out 


here when you knew only the girls had anything 
to do with the refreshments? 

LAWRENCE: Because we wanted to. 

Leaver: Is that what you’re going to do all 
the afternoon, anything you feel like just because 
you want to? 

LawRENCE (through a full mouth): No, Miss 
Bradley. 

Joun (disgust in his sticky tone): No! 

Leaper: Is it any fairer for you two boys to 
be here eating than for the whole forty or fifty in 
there? They’re already coming. 

Boys: No. 

Leaver: Please stay here until every bit in 
your mouth is gone. 

Joun: I’msorry. I wish I hadn’t done it. 

Leaver: Thank you, John. 

Lawrence: I’m sorry too, Miss Bradley. 
How it Turned Out 

Joun (entering chapel, impressed at the sight of 
the guests): Gee, I hope I don’t get acting funny! 

Stuart’s idea of a courteous greeting: “ Get in 
there and take off your things. Get in there, I 
say!’’ John’s: ‘‘ You big boob, come and get 
your cap!” Shy Tina greeted every child she 
knew as if she were glad to see her. Florrie 
rushed to greet late comers and give them their 
caps. Every one listened for directions, joined 
heartily in each event, and got everybody else 
to. There was no rowdyism. John for the first 
time played every game. Once Frankie drummed 
on the piano, but the leader made the sign agreed 
upon. He stopped. The contrast between this 
and the Christmas party was marked. Mothers 
and teachers were enthusiastic. 

The party was in every way a success. 
were real little hosts and hostesses. 


All 


EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY 


January — 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


Song. “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.” 
Poem. ‘“ When Jesus was a Little Lad ”’ 


When Jesus was a little lad 
In Nazareth of Galilee, 

He listened to the wind’s low song 
In every swaying tree. 


At evening when the tired flocks 

Came slowly down the crooked street, 
He pitied every lamb that passed 

On timid, tired feet. 


Not any weary, wounded dove, 
Or small dog homeless in the rain, 
Or frightened hare, or fluttering wren, 
Could need his help in vain. 


His comrades loved him; he was kind 

To younger children when they played; 
And everybody trusted him, 

So true and unafraid. 


(Refrain) 
I daily pray that I shall be 
Like him of whom the Scriptures tell, 
That gentle boy who loved so well, 
The little lad of Galilee! 
— Nancy Byrd Turner, 
in Song and Play for Children. 


Conversation. A mother said, ‘I love to 
have my Mary play with Herbert Moffatt next 
door. He is so courteous and kind that when 
Mary comes home she is courteous and kind to her 
brother and sister. Herbert seems to bring out 
all the best that is in her.”’ 

Wouldn’t it be a happy thing if the mothers 
of our playmates could say that about us? For 
there is nothing in the world so fine as to be able 
to bring out the best in other people. What do 
you think the mothers in Nazareth said after 
their children had been playing with Jesus? 

He can be our teacher, even as a child, can’t he? 
If we made him our companion, he would bring 
out only the best in us, wouldn’t he? How could 
we make him our companion? 


February 


Wouldn’t it be a happy thing too, if your 
mothers should say to their friends, “I love to 
have John or Mary or Egbert or Marian go to 
Sunday school or to Sunday-school parties. All 
the children there seem to have a good influence 
over my child. He is always gentle and polite 
and unselfish after he has been with them.” 

That’s what your mothers ought to say. We 
know Jesus. And Jesus helps us to be good if we 
remember him. There are hundreds of children 
who don’t know him. They have never had 
a chance to hear about him. There is some excuse 
for them when they are unkind or selfish. 
But we know him. 

There is a little song which is like a prayer 
which asks Jesus to help us to be like him. Miss 
will sing it as we bow our heads, and then 
we will bring our offerings that other children 
may learn to know and love Jesus, too. 

(Leader or assistant sings “ Lord, who Lovest 
Little Children,” in Songs for Little People.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Correlation with Weekday Session. (Check 
up on the party. Use the picture as if the class 
were asking, ‘‘ Were you pleased, great Teacher? ”’ 
Mention acts which must have pleased the great 
Teacher, i. e., ““ I saw somebody holding in when 
he had a chance to hit back.” Let the children 
report if they “caught” others in unselfish or 
kindly acts.) 


FRANKIE (beaming): Say, wasn’t that a 
great party? Some different from the 
Christmas one, — we didn’t run that! 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 


Worship and Fellowship 
(Recall the second stanza of “Lord, who 
Lovest Little Children,’ — 


“Thou who lived a holy child life, 
Help us to be pure like thee.” 


(Say that Jesus said something about people 
who were pure in heart. Read Matt. 5:8, ex- 
plainng that “blessed” means “ happy.” 
Happy are the pure in heart, for they shall see 


102 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


God. Say that you have a story about those 
very words — the pure in heart.) 


Story. 
Tue CHILDREN’S PLAYGROUND 


Once upon a time, far, far away, there lived a 
king who loved children. So he set to work to 
make for the children of his kingdom the most 
wonderful playground in the whole world. In 
_ it there were swings, and teeter-boards, and sand 
piles for the little ones, and a brook where toy 
boats could be sailed, and a summer-house 
covered with vines. Everything in the play- 
ground was for children. The flowers in the garden 
could be picked. The trees could be climbed. 
The grass could be stepped upon. The only thing 
that seemed unchildlike was a high hedge all 
about the playground, with a gate that locked 
and a gatekeeper. The children thought they 
should like the hedge, for it would make the play- 
ground cozy, and no grown people could look 
in and interrupt the play. They were not so 
sure that they would like the gate, for on it was 
written in letters of gold: 


For THE Pure IN HEART 


They did not know exactly what that meant. 

The opening day came, and long before nine 
o’clock a line of children was waiting before the 
gate. Some had balls, some had little rakes and 
hoes. Some who had heard of the brook had 
brought their toy boats. Nearly every girl 
carried her doll. There was one tiny boy with 
his Teddy bear. There was one tiny girl eating 
a piece of bread, for she had slept late, and did 
not dare to wait to eat her breakfast. 

They had plenty of time to wonder at the 
meaning of the golden letters, which an older boy 
read aloud to each child that came up. Nobody, 
as I said, knew exactly what they meant, though 
one boy ran back home to have a clean suit put 
on, and a girl went to the fountain to wash her 
hands. 

At nine a bell rang. The gate slowly swung 
open, and the children crowded forward. There 
stood the gatekeeper in a uniform of white. 

“Are you pure in heart?’ asked the gate- 
keeper. 

** We do not know,” answered the children. 

“Come in and play,” said the gatekeeper, 
“and when the king comes, he will know.” 

So into the playground flocked the children — 


103 


into the wonderful playground, where everything 
was for children. They scattered right and left, 
to play what they liked best, and the gatekeeper 
closed the gate and let them play. 

No child knew exactly when the king came 
into the playground. The bell on the gate did 
not ring, and they did not see the gatekeeper 
leave his place. The little girl who had run back 
to the fountain to wash her hands was the first 
to see him. She had filled her hands with white 
flowers, and she was thinking how sorry she would 
have been if they had soiled the whiteness of the 
blossoms, when she looked up, and there he was 
— the king, with a robe of shining white, and a 
gold crown on his head. 

“Are the flowers to give away >” he asked, 
smiling down at her. 

“No; she said, “ they are for me. I never 
had flowers to pick before, and I picked them to 
put on my own little table.” 

How she wished she could have told him that 
she had picked them to give away! Maybe he 
would put her out of the garden! But he did not 
even stop smiling, and he said, “ Little Pure 
Heart, I hope you will enjoy them, and never 
pretend to be better than you are.” 

Then she knew she could stay in the play- 
ground and she said, ““ You make me want to 
give part to my mother.” 

The next children to see the king were a group 
of boys who were sailing their boats in the brook. 
All these boys had cheap little boats, except one, 
who had a splendid big sailboat, painted white, 
with a sail that could be pulled down and a rudder 
with ropes. 

“My father bought it for me,” he was saying 
importantly. “He paid as much as fifty dollars 
for it. He got it in a big city, and it’s the best 
boat any boy ever had. I’ve got a train of cars 
at home that cost a hundred dollars, and a ball 
made of sclid gold, —”’ 

Just at that moment his eyes fell upon the king, 
and he stopped short and turned red, for he knew 
the king could look right into his heart and see 
that what he said was not true. The king said 
never a word, but pointed toward the gate. The 
boy took his boat and started off, crying. Still 
the king never spoke. The boy turned about, 
half-way to the gate, and said, “ It wasn’t true 
what I said. My boat only cost two dollars, 
and I haven’t any train of cars at all, and my ball 
is of leather.” 


104 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Then the king smiled and called, ‘‘ Pure Heart, 
come back and sail your boat, and never again 
use words that hide what is really true.” 

A baby saw the king next — a baby girl, with 
a baby doll in her arms. She was swaying back 
and forth, and singing in a funny little baby way: 


“* Go s’eep, 
*Tars peep, 
Modder wa’ch keep.” 


“Sing away, little-girl mother,” said the king. 
‘“‘ The mothers are the real Pure Hearts.”’ 

Out in the field some big boys were running a 
race, when the king stepped up and said he would 
tell who won. A boy came in ahead, but the 
king said, “‘ You lost!” 

‘IT lost?’ said the boy angrily. 
get in first?” 

‘“ Yes,”’ said the king. 

“Then why do you say I lost?” 

The king said nothing, but looked straight into 
his eyes. 

“Let us try again,” said the boy, tossing his 
head. 

So the boys went back to the starting-place, 
and ran the race again, and this time the same 
boy got in ahead, and as before the king said, 
“You lost!” and looked straight into the boy’s 
eyes, and pointed to the gate. 

Then the boy hung his head, and turned red, 
and started off, but he turned back and mut- 
tered, ‘“How could you know that I tripped a 
boy? How could you know I started ahead of 
the line? ”’ 

‘‘] see everything,” said the king. 
try again?” 

This time the boy came in just a bit ahead, and 
the king said, “You won. Remember that 
cheating blackens a pure heart.”’ 

Then the king sat beside a tree on which was 
the longest swing. 

“Tt’s Elsa’s turn,” said the girl who was 
swinging. 

“ No,” said little Elsa, * it’s Ruth’s.”’ 

“Oh, no!” said Ruth, “it’s yours, truly, 
Elsa.” 

“No,” said Elsa, “ because I took a swing all 
by myself, when you both ran down to the 
brook.” 

“T will swing you and Ruth together, Pure 
Heart,”’ said the king. 

Then he walked over to where some children 


“ Didn’t I 


* Will you 


were talking eagerly, their heads close together. 
As he came near, they flushed and were silent. 

“Why do you stop when I come near?”’ the 
king asked. ‘‘ Pure hearts are never ashamed of 
their words.” 

Then he touched the lips of each with a white 
pearl, and they began to laugh and chatter merrily 
about things that nice children talk about. 

And so it came to pass that all the children in 
the kingdom played in the playground. Some- 
times one or another would have to leave it for a 
day, but they could not bear to stay away, and 
the king could always help them to be Pure of 
Heart once more, and so get back into the play- 
ground that was the most wonderful playground 
in the world. 

— Frances Weld Danielson. 

Song. “ Blessed are the pure in heart,” Songs 
for Little People. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Material 


Story. 
Jesus in His Fatuer’s House 

(Bible Reference, Luke 2 : 41-50) 

You’ve been on long trips — much longer, 
perhaps, than the one I shall tell you about; but 
you have gone on a train or in an automobile. 
You have never walked for seventy or eighty 
miles, camping on the way, have you? Wouldn’t 
it be fun, especially if your uncles and aunts and 
cousins and nearly all the boys your age, and in 
fact almost every one in town, was going too? 
Think of the picnics on the way, and the excite- 
ment of being out nights as well as days. 

And then think of finally reaching, at the end 
of three or four days, the great city which you 
have always heard about and longed to see! A 
big city is full of wonderful sights to a boy who 
has lived in a little village all his life. But there 
was something special about this one which made 
visiting it even more of an event than for us to 
visit New York or San Francisco. 

The temple was there. Every one of the boys 
who took this journey had heard of the temple. 
It was God’s house in Jerusalem, and was very 
grand and beautiful. Men had been working on 
it for years to make it so. One part of it was 
called the Holy of Holies and — think of it! — 
it was so sacred that only once a year could any- 
body enter it, and then it must be some one 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


especially appointed. Around the temple and 
belonging to it were great open spaces called 
courts, and surrounding the courts was a wall with 
gates. Every boy going to this city of Jerusalem, 
the great city of the Jews, knew the verse we 
know: “ Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, 
and into his courts with praise.” Of course they 
knew it, for in their own town, although there 
was no temple, there was a smaller kind of church 
called a synagogue, where they went to school. 
And their teaching was from the books in the first 
part of the Bible. They were taught the stories 
of Abraham and Moses, and Samuel and David; 
they learned to read and write the many laws 
which were supposed to make them good Jews; 
and they learned by heart Psalm after Psalm. 
You know that the verse about entering into God’s 
house with thanksgiving and praise is from the 
Psalms. They could recite many, many times as 
much of the Bible as you know. Even as tiny 
children they learned, “‘ Thou shalt love the Lord 
thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, 
and with all thy mind.” 

There was one boy who was taking the walking 
trip to the city who not only knew that verse, 
but who did love God with all his heart and soul 
and mind. He had a mother who had taught 
him about God long before he went to school in 
the synagogue. She had taken him out in the 
fields and shown him the flowers and birds which 
God had made; she had told him that all his food 
and everything he had came from God, and made 
the boy love him with a great love. He learned 
to help about the house, for she taught him that 
helping others was a way of showing love to God. 

The boy’s father was a carpenter, and must 
have been very fond of his son, for when the boy 
grew up he said beautiful things about the love of 
a father. You have guessed that the boy was 
Jesus, haven’t you? The mother was Mary, and 
Joseph was the carpenter. Together they taught 
their child how to grow strong and good, how to 
help in the house and shop, how to do all his 
work well and how to live happily and peacefully 
with his younger brothers and sisters. 

They told him, too, about the great city, 
Jerusalem, and the temple there. Every year 
great companies of Jews from all over the world 
went to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of the 
Passover. Every year Mary and Joseph went, 
so they knew all about it. 

There were schools in Jerusalem, too, in con- 


105 


nection with the temple, but they were for older 
pupils than the synagogue schools. Around the 
wall of the temple court were little alcoves, and 
in these alcoves the greatest and most learned 
teachers would gather to discuss the meaning of 
all they had read about God. These schools were 
like universities, and the teachers were called 
doctors. They were doctors of the law, not of 
medicine. 

I like to think of Jesus and his brother James 
going to their synagogue school in the little town 
of Nazareth, and then afterwards on the way 
home, or off on a hillside near, talking things over 
and puzzling about them — perhaps, even won- 
dering if their teachers had been right. What 
wouldn’t boys like that give to get a chance at 
the famous learned doctors in Jerusalem, in the 
courts of the temple! There was probably noth- 
ing that such teachers would not know, no ques- 
tion they could not answer. 

How those boys, Jesus and James, must have 
longed for the time to come when they should be 
old enough and strong enough to take that long 
journey with their parents and relatives and 
friends! It would be fun to camp along the way, 
but nothing compared to seeing Jerusalem and 
the temple, and listening to the doctors. How 
they must have shouted when their parents told 
them they could go! 

Jesus was twelve years old. The trip took him 
past places he had heard about in his mother’s 
stories and at school. It was like coming on old 
friends to see them. Often the older people 
would start a song which was a Psalm, and Jesus 
could join in, for he had learned the Psalms in 
school. 

When they finally reached Jerusalem, after 
three or four days, what do you think he did? 
The celebration lasted a whole week. Do you 
think he spent that time looking at strange things 
in the city shops, or playing in the streets? I 
don’t. Where do you think he was most of the 
time? In the magnificent temple, God’s house in 
Jerusalem which he had heard so much about? 
Do you think he found the alcoves where the 
learned men were? Do you think he asked any 
questions? Think how full the temple courts 
must have been. There were nearly a million 
people in the city that week, and all of them 
wanted to visit the temple. 

I told you how the people traveled to and from 
Jerusalem in great companies. There were 


106 


probably hundreds in the one in which Mary and 
Joseph and their friends were. When the day 
came for them to leave, they started down the 
road. Probably families were a little mixed up; 
boys who were comrades walking together, others, 
eager to tell their relatives all they had seen in 
Jerusalem, walking as they talked with their 
uncles and aunts or cousins. 


Joun: Sure, that’s the way it would be. 


But so long as they were all in one great com- 
pany going in the same direction, it didn’t matter. 
When night came they would all be straightened 
out again. At least, that is what Mary and 
Joseph thought, when they saw that Jesus wasn’t 
with them. But when night came Jesus had not 
joined them. Perhaps in such a crowd he 
couldn’t find his father and mother. So they 
searched for him. From one group to another 
they went, growing more and more anxious. 
Nobody remembered having seen him since they 
started. Other families had found their missing 
members, but Mary and Joseph looked in vain 
for Jesus. Where could he be? There was 
nothing for the frightened parents to do but to 
turn back. It had taken a whole day to travel 
so far. It would take another to get back to 
Jerusalem. All the way as they met group after 
group of people who had left the city, they 
searched among them for their child. He might 
be with some strange company. But night came 
again and they had not found him. 

Into the city at last they came, and went up and 
down the cross streets. But not in the streets, 
nor the shops, nor the house in which they had 
stayed during the Passover, did they find Jesus. 
They turned their steps toward the temple where 
he had spent so much time. 

In the alcoves were groups of men discussing 
deep subjects. In one, people seemed so inter- 
ested that they crowded close to hear the questions 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


and answers. The learned, gray-haired doctors, 
with their big books of law in their hands, were 
leaning forward, and when Mary and Joseph 
heard a child’s voice among the others, they knew 
it was Jesus’. Joyfully they hastened toward 
him. They had found their son in God’s house! 
Why had they not come here before? 

“Oh, my son!”’ Mary exclaimed. ‘‘ Why did 
you not come with us? We have searched for 
you everywhere, and were in great sorrow.” 

Jesus listened to his mother. He seemed 
surprised. These men were telling him what 
they thought about God, his heavenly Father. 
Wouldn’t his mother want him to talk with them? 
How could he know what his Father wanted of 
him, unless he took every opportunity to hear . 
about him? For to know what God wished, and 
then to do his best to bring it about, was what 
Jesus wanted all his life. 

‘‘ Why did you seek me everywhere, mother? ”’ 
he asked. “‘ Did you not know that I would be 
in my Father’s house, about my Father’s busi- 
ness? ”’ 

But he was glad she had come for him. He 
and his mother knew things about his Father 
that even these wise teachers had not found out. 
When he grew up he could tell others about God, 
like the doctors; only he was sure he could add 
much which they had left out. The only thing 
to do now was to go home with his parents and 
go on living as he knew God wanted his Son to 
live. That would keep his heart pure, and he 
knew that the pure in heart can see God and 
know him better than all the wise men in the 
world who depend only on books and learning. 

Suggested Prayer. Our Father, Jesus taught 
us that thou art our Father as well as his, and 
that thou hast work for us, too, to do. Help us 
to keep our hearts so pure that we may know 
what thou wouldst have us do, and may want to 
doit. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


EIGHTEENTH WEEKDAY 
Story and Work 


A Happy Valley Story 


How tae New Year Law WorkeEp 


Would you like to hear how that Happy Valley 
New Year law worked out, and the surprise that 
came from it? 

In the first place, the children who had wished 
their families a Happy New Year had made all 
sorts of interesting discoveries. As they kept 
trying, week after week, to live up to their New 
Year’s wishes, they found they hardly had to try. 
As soon as they’d formed the habit of being courte- 
ous, unselfish and prompt about minding, it was 
easier to be so than not. You know the first 
time you do a thing you haven’t been used to 
doing, like riding a bicycle, it seems quite hard. 
You have to keep your mind on it every minute 
or you'll make a mistake. But after a while it 
becomes so easy that it’s like walking or anything 
else that you do without thinking about it. 

So the Happy Valley children found they were 
minding as quickly as they were spoken to; they 
were asking for what they wanted in a courteous 
way. Instead of saying, “ Gimme this,” ‘“ Say, 
I want some of that,” they found it was just as 
easy to say, “ I would like some of this, please, ” 
or “ Please, may I have that?’’? When others 
did something for them they now had such a habit 
of saying, “Oh, thank you,” or “Thank you 
very much,” that they felt grateful for the least 
little thing. It seemed as if they were saying, or 
at least feeling “thank you” all the time. You 
can see that Happy Valley was really getting to be 
a pretty nice place to live in, and not wholly on 
account of the mountains and fields and river, 
either. 


One day Miss True looked out of the school- 
room window and saw a group of boys and girls 
on the church lawn with heads close together. 
It was nearly six weeks after New Year’s Day. 
“IT wonder what they’re up to now,” she said to 
herself, but all she could hear was: 


“ That’s so. Why didn’t we think of it be- 
fore?” 

“Sure, Pll do it. It’s easy after you once get 
started.” 


“Won't she be surprised? ” 
“ T can think of some things right now —” 
She went to the blackboard to do some work, 


but was suddenly interrupted. A dozen children 
were crowding through the doorway. ‘‘ We wish 
you a Happy New Year, Miss True!” they cried 
together. Imagine — six weeks after New Year’s 
Day! But Miss True knew the law. She also 
knew that it was never too late to wish anybody a 
Happy New Year if you really mean it. So 
though she looked a little surprised, her face 
broke into a very glad smile and she said, “ Thank 
you, children! ”’ 

Perhaps you think it didn’t mean much to 
wish their teacher a Happy New Year. But you 
should have seen them at recess time! 

Somehow or other Freddie never liked to play 
what the others did, and it worried Miss True, 
for it often meant that the game would be spoiled 
for lack of just one more. Today, when they 
were getting ready to play Three-deep, there 
were just two children left over after the double 
circle was formed. Exactly two were needed, 
one to chase and one to be chased. As usual 
Freddy started to say, “I don’t want to play,” 
but when he saw them all waiting, he suddenly said 
instead, ‘“I—I’ll be It.”” As he ran past Miss 
True he heard her say, “ Thank you, Freddie,” 
and he was as proud as could be, and had a very 
good time, once he got into the game. 

‘Gimme my hat, you —” shouted Dan whose 
hat was suddenly snatched away from his head. 
And he left the game to run after the boy who had 
seized it. 

“Tl fix you,” he threatened. ‘‘ You'll be 
sorry allright.” He had caught the boy. Butall 
at once he saw Miss True watching them anx- 
iously. 

“ Aw,” he said, “ what do I care if you take 
my cap? It isn’t cold. I just chased you for 
fun!” And he came back and joined the game; 
which was just what the other boy did too, 
thrusting Dan’s cap back on the head where it 
belonged. 

“Thank you, boys,” said Miss True in their 
ears as they passed. They smiled a little, but 
pretended they hadn’t heard. 

The children hardly noticed an old man who 
was leaning against the wall of the church, who, 
however, was watching them. He looked tired, 
and had put down the big pack he had been 
carrying. 


107 


108 


Dorothy Fairchild noticed him first. 

“* See the peddler,” she said. “* He looks tired, 
and the ground is so wet there’s no place to sit. 
May we ask him inside to rest, Miss True? ”’ 

“That would be very nice,” said Miss True, 
and Dorothy ran to the old man. 

“ Wonder if he’s blind,” said one of the boys, 
for the man wore dark glasses. They watched 
him as he thanked Dorothy for the invitation and 
started to lift his pack. 

“My, but that must be heavy! ”’ said Freddie, 
and he and another boy ran to carry it for him. 
He looked very old and tired, and as if he couldn’t 
see very well. He had a cloth wound around his 
head like a turban, and he used a cane. 

They drew a chair into a sunshiny corner near 
the plants. It was the corner where their favorite 
pictures hung. 

Now the children were all feeling particularly 
well satisfied. Their Happy New Year for Miss 
True was starting off beautifully. She even 
seemed pleased over what they were doing for the 
old man. It was fun wishing people a Happy 
New Year. They saw that the old man was 
looking at their picture of Jesus. Evidently, 
then, he could see a little. Their eyes followed 
his, and then John pointed to the picture and 
said, “‘ Miss True, I think he likes to have us wish 
each other a Happy New Year, don’t you? ” 

All the children looked at Miss True expect- 
antly. 

The old man spoke. 

‘Who is this,”’ he inquired, “ who would like 
such a thing? ” 


“It’s Jesus. He’s our Teacher,’ answered 
Dorothy. ‘‘ We’re going to school to him, but 
sometimes we forget.” 

‘“*T see,” answered the old man, but looked a 
little puzzled, still. 

“Don’t you think he’d like it?”’’ questioned 
the children again. 


“Why, of course he would,” said Miss True. 
‘* After all, it is Jesus we are trying to please in all 
of these New Year wishes.”’ She turned to the 
old man. 

“Wishing a person a Happy New Year means 
something special to us, sir,” she explained to the 
peddlar. “It is like saying, ‘ We will try to 
make you happy this year.’ It is against the 
law in Happy Valley to make anybody that wish 
without trying to bring it about.” 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


** So!” said the old man, interested, raising his 
shaggy white eyebrows. 

As soon as school was over Freddie and Dan 
went up to the peddler. 

“ Are you going far, sir)”’ they asked courte- 
ously. ‘‘ We’d like to carry your pack.” 

‘“* Now that’s very kind of you, very kind,” he 
said. ‘‘ You'll find it’s heavy. It’s full of 
stories.” 

‘ Stories! ’’ said both the boys at once. That 
sounded interesting. ‘‘ But how can stories be so 
heavy? Are they books?’’ They were carrying 
the pack between them. It was heavy. 

‘* Books, and the illustrations for them,” the 
old man said. 

“Are you selling them?” they asked as they 
went down the steps. 

“No, I’m collecting them,” was the answer. 

“Oh, see what the boys are doing!” said 
Freddie to Dan. For the minute school was out 
what looked like a small army scattered itself 
over the wide church lawn and began picking up 
papers and sticks. 

‘* Miss True’s been talking about how this lawn 
looks ever since that storm we had a long time 
ago,” Dan exclaimed. ‘‘ We boys thought we’d 
pick it up some time.’’ They remembered it 
today on account of those New Year wishes. 

They were going up the street where once, a 
few days after Christmas, some visitors in the 
town had walked. Do you remember the wise- 
looking man and his family, and how they had 
heard two children quarreling over their new skiis 
and snowshoes? Oddly enough, these same chil- 
dren were playing in front of their house now. 
They were playing with a beautiful new roller 
coaster cart. 

“ Tt’s my turn, ” said the girl. 

“But it’s my cart,” answered the boy. 
ought to have twice as many turns as you.” 

“But mother said —’”’ began the girl, and was 
stopped short. The peddler and Dan and Freddie 
stopped to see what would happen. The boy 
was walking up to the girl. Was he going to 
slap her? He was frowning fiercely, and his 
sister looked a wee bit afraid. He put his scowl- 
ing face close up to his sister’s — and broke into 
alaugh! ‘“* Ha, ha, ha!” heshouted. “‘ Thought 
I was going to do something to you, didn’t you? 
Well, you don’t catch me quarreling. Here, take 
your turn, and when you come back, let’s ride 
together. One can steer and the other push. 


oT 


—, 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 109 


Here, I'll give you a start.’”’ And he gave the 
little girl in the cart a push that sent her flying 
down the walk. 

“Well! ” said the peddler. 


“T thought he was going to hit her, didn’t 
you? ”’ remarked Freddie. 

“That’s another story for my pack,” the ped- 
dler observed, and then, as they had reached the 
store he said, ‘‘ Thank you, boys, for helping me. 
This is as far as I go now. I wish you success 
with all your New Year wishes.”’ 

The boys went on. 

“Funny old man,” observed Freddie. 
I could see inside his pack.” 

“Nice old man,” added Dan. ‘‘ Wish he’d 
stay. Think of having him around with a pack 
full of stories! ”’ 
~ Wouldn’t they have been surprised if they had 
seen what happened next? They knew about it 
that evening, for Freddie Thorpe’s father came 
right home and told Freddie about it, and Freddie 
lost no time in hurrying with the news to Dan’s 
house. 


Wish 


It seems that as soon as the old man had entered 
the store, Freddie’s father, seeing what a great 
load he had, came forward at once to help him 
with it. But before he reached him the old man 
had thrown aside his cane, torn off his black 
glasses and the cloth around his head, and stood 
straight and tall and fine-looking before Mr. 
Thorpe. It was the “ wise man.” 

Mr. Thorpe rushed forward and clasped his 
hand. 


“Sir,” he said, “we never expected to see 
you again, but we are glad to have you back. 
You taught us a valuable lesson. We could learn 
much from you if you would stay —”’ 


The visitor interrupted him. ‘Say no more of 
that,” he insisted. ‘‘ I have seen enough today 
to know that others can learn much from Happy 
Valley. I see that I made another mistake in 
leaving it. It is the kind of place my wife and 
I wish our children to live in. Will you make my 
apologies to your town council, and ask if there 
is room for us to make our home here? I start 
at once for my family, whom I left just outside 
the valley. If you see any of those nice children, 
tell them that my pack of stories will be at their 
service. Good-bye until tomorrow.” 

It seemed almost too good to be true, Freddie 
thought when he heard the news from his father. 


Dan thought so too, when he heard the news 
from Freddie, and you may be sure Miss True 
and all her school thought it when the boys came 
tearing in to tell them next morning. 

“Happy Valley is better!’ they kept repeat- 
ing delightedly, “‘and he thought so all on 
account of us!” 

Work 


Make valentines for people who would least 
expect them. 


Report of School A 


Second Step of Project in Friendship 

During games boys recalled leader’s toy auto- 
mobile. She repeated that it was sent as an 
invitation to a trip to Virginia in June. She told 
about her friend’s work among children there. 

Cuitp: Let’s send a box of presents from our 
class. 

Leaver: Of course they don’t even know yet 
that there is any such class as ours. It would be 
nice to get acquainted before that. 

FLorriE: Let’s make them some valentines! 

AnnE: We could send them our left-over 
party caps, too. 


The Magic of a Song 


Leader left the room to get scissors and paste. 
The children were choosing hearts, arrows, and 
lace paper for valentines for the Virginia children. 
She heard in quarrelsome tones, ‘‘ That’s mine! ” 


“It is not, I had it first!’”’ ‘‘ You did not!” 
‘“* Here, you gimme that!”’ “Then you give me 
this one, —it is mine, anyway.” “It is not!” 


“It is too!” 

Suddenly it was quiet. Then came the sound 
of singing. As she returned the children were 
all busily working and peacefully singing, “* Above 
thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars 


go by.” 
LEADER: This is the loveliest surprise I’ve 
had at all. One minute you’re quarreling. The 


next you're singing. 

ANNE: Stuart started it. That was a good 
song to sing when we're all quarreling at once, 
wasn’t it? It’s so soft and quiet. 

Leaver: That’s what I call fine self-control. 

ANNE (later): I’ve got an idea! Wouldn’t it 
be good whenever we're quarreling to start sing- 
ing! Stuart thought cf it today, but I thought 
of it for all the time. 


NINETEENTH SUNDAY 
February 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Make the third stanza of “‘ Lord, Who Lovest 
Little Children ”’ the keynote of the period: 


“In our school time and our playing, 
Make us gentle, Lord, like thee.” 


(Use the picture of Jesus with the children, 
showing how the children flocked to him and knew 
him for a friend; that if he had not been gentle 
they would not have come. Little children are 
afraid of roughness and harshness. Ask, if he 
was such a gentle man, what kind of a boy he 
must have been. 

(Sing, or have assistant sing, two stanzas of 
“Gentle Child of Nazareth,” a hymn sung by 
Christian mothers of Palestine, from Song and 
Play for Children, by Danielson and Conant. 
Explain this fact before the children hear the 
song.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Use of Familiar Material. (Review last 
week’s story with picture study. This is a good 
opportunity to compare conceptions of different 
artists. Nearly every child is familiar with 
Hofmann’s “ Christ in the Temple. ’’ If possible, 
show a copy now. Show also William Hole’s 
“The Boy Jesus in the Temple,’ Primary 
Picture Set No. 2, International Graded 
Lessons. Then give each child Holman Hunt’s 
“ Finding Christ in the Temple,” Wilde’s 
Bible Pictures. Let the children try to find what 
was in each artist’s mind when he started his 
picture. Speak of the time each must have spent, 
of the loving thought and the prayers for help, 
to make his picture tell the story as beautifully 
as possible. 

(In the next worship period the children will 
hear how a man spent his whole life trying to 
make the story of Jesus beautiful, using his skill 
and art in a little different way.) 


SECOND WORSHIP PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Introduce the story by the song, “ Tell Me 
the Stories of Jesus.”’) 


Story. 
Tue Monx’s BIBLE 


Years and years ago it was the custom of men 
who wished to please God to leave their homes 
and their friends and shut themselves away from 
the world. They thought by doing this they 
could think more about God, and come to know 
him better. They were called monks, and the 
place where they lived together was called a 
monastery. 

To a monastery one day came a man who 
wanted to be a monk and live there, working for 
God and thinking about him all his life. But 
how should he work for God? When you shut 
yourself away from people there is so little chance 
to help them, and we know that working for and 
helping others is the way to please our Father in 
heaven. 


School B. Isaset: Do you think God 
wanted him to go to the monastery? 


This man had a wonderful gift. God had given 
it to him, and now he thought of a way to use it 
for others, and so give it back to God. He could 
make beautiful letters. He could color them, 
too, with gold and paints, so that a single letter 
would be like a picture in itself. 

When we see letters like that now we call them 
illuminated. That means lighted up. He lighted 
up his letters with shining gold and with exquisite 
colors. (Show, if possible, a bit of illumination.) 

It is very hard to do. If often takes days and 
days to make just a few letters. But this man 
did not mind. God had given him a gift which 
few people had, and he thought of a beautiful 
way to use it. He could not tell stories. He 
could not write new ones. He could not even 
paint pictures which would tell stories like the 
artists who painted “ Jesus with the Children ” 
and “Christ in the Temple.’”’ But he could 
print these stories in beautiful letters, and “ light 
up ” the whole word of God, which is our Bible. 
Think what a task it would be! It might need 
a whole lifetime to tell all the stories in the Bible, 
to write down every one of God’s rules for living, 
and to tell everything that Jesus taught. It was 
before the days of printing. There were no Bibles 
like ours. Ordinary people did not have Bibles. 


110 


a ~~ a; 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


There were only a few to be used in churches, 
and those were all written by hand. 


So the monk was happy as he set to work. 
He would give one more Bible to the world, and 
he would make it very beautiful, with gold and 
color and lovely borders. 

He made his pens from the quills of big birds, 
for there were no steel pens then. He tore off 
the feathers, and whittled and scraped and shaped 
and sharpened until they were ready for use. 
He used sheepskin for paper and worked on a 
slanting board, ruling all his pages to keep his 
letters straight. Here is a picture an artist has 
painted of a monk doing just what he did. (Show 
post-card reproduction of “The Manuscript,” 
from The Evolution of Printing Series. Sold by 
Foster and Reynolds, Washington, D. C., 25 
cents per dozen.) 

Day after day he kept at it, week after week, 
and the weeks ran into months and the months 
into years. His back grew bent and lame, his 
eyes smarted and ached. And so he grew from 
a young man to an old one, and at length both 
the book and his life here on earth were finished. 
He had given his whole life to the book, but he 
left a beautiful gift to the world. 

When printing made the making of Bibles 
easy, and there were many to be had, beautiful 
old hand-painted ones were gradually put aside, 
and finally got into collections where they could 
be safely kept. Of course they were very valu- 
able. Only museums or very rich people like 
kings or emperors could afford them. The one 
which our monk made was owned for a long time 
by the royal family of Austria. Just before the 
last war broke out and emperors feared that 
there might be a war, and that large sums of 
money would be needed, they sold as much of 
their property as they could. So the royal 
family of Austria got rid of many of their valu- 
ables. The beautiful Bible was among them, 
and was sold to a book dealer from another 
country. 

He lived among his books in a little, dark, 
musty old shop in Louvain in Belgium, and how 
he loved those books of his! There were shelves 
and shelves of them, as far as the ceiling and 
farther, for a twisting spiral staircase led up to 
more overhead. 

The illuminated Bible was one of his most 
precious volumes. He loved to turn over page 


111 


after page and examine the letters so carefully 
made. 

Then one day the order came for everybody to 
get out of the city as quickly as possible. The 
enemy’s army was marching through Belgium, 
destroying everything as it went. It was near- 
ing Louvain. 

At once families packed everything they could 
carry and hurried out of the city. Some had 
motors, some had ox-carts, some only small dog- 
carts. Whatever they had they filled with their 
treasures, and loaded themselves down with 
bags of clothes and household goods besides. 

The poor little book dealer got hold of a big 
cart and a pair of oxen and filled the cart with 
the books he loved most from his shop. He 
could take only a few. It was hard to choose, for 
he loved them all. But the illuminated Bible 
was one of the first to be put in. 

For miles he drove the oxen, poking them every 
now and then to make them go faster, for he was 
hurrying with the rest to reach the border of the 
country, so that he could cross and be safe. 
Alas, his hurrying did no good, for a shell from the 
enemy’s guns shot and killed the oxen, and set 
fire to his precious load. What could the poor 
dealerdo? Nothing but seize from the cart what 
treasures he could, and leave the rest to burn. 
By the time he crossed the border he hardly 
knew what he was doing, he had suffered so much. 

“Who will buy my little book?’ he went 
about crying piteously, holding out the wonderful 
Bible, and at last some one bought it. Perhaps 
the book dealer would have died but for the 
money it brought. I like to think that that was 
the first life the monk’s work saved. 

Now up in Poland, another country, the 
war was destroying lives and property and land, 
as in Belgium. Women and children were starv- 
ing. Food, money, doctors and nurses were 
needed for the sick and suffering. A great Polish 
musician named Paderewski, who had _ spent 
many years in this country, went to their relief. 
He was head of a committee to get help for the 
suffering ones, and — what do you think? There 
fell into his hands the beautiful Bible which some 
one had bought from the book dealer of Louvain. 
As soon as he saw it he knew it was very, very 
valuable. There was a lifetime of work on it. 
He could sell it now for a great deal of money to 
save many lives in Poland. 

And that is just what he did. He brought it 


112 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


to America and found a man who wanted it. 
The man gave him ten thousand dollars for it — 
think of it!— enough perhaps to save many, 
many children from starving. Don’t you hope 
the old monk somehow knows that his whole 
lifetime of work has saved the lives of many 
others? 

And don’t you think God must have been 
pleased that the gift which he gave to the monk 
has helped so many of his children? 


School B. I[sasex: I think God knew 
all the time that the monk was going to 
help lots of people. 


Song-Prayer. 


““ Lord, who lovest little children, 
Hear us when we pray to thee. 


‘Thou didst live thy life for others, 
Make us helpful, Lord, like thee.” 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Correlated Hand-Work. (Show samples of 
sheepskin, illuminated pages, and pass around 
the class the picture of a monk at work. Let 
the children try printing nicely one verse from 
the Bible to see what a great task it must have 
been to print and decorate thousands. 


(Suggest, since the picture, “ Finding of Jesus 
in the Temple,” is to be given them to keep, 
that it would be very nice to have some kind of 
book to keep this in, as well as others which they 
may have later. They could put the pictures on 
one page and on the opposite page print carefully 
—even decorating the letters and making a 
border for the verse — “‘ Knew ye not that I 
must be in my Father’s house>’’ Print this on the 
board, and let them practise copying, as well as 
decorating the letters. As many samples of 
borders or illuminated letters as you can collect 
will be helpful. 

(This may be the beginning of a scrap-book in 
which can be kept verses learned, songs and 
poems memorized, and pictures collected. It 
should be a loose-leaf affair, so that sheets may 
be worked on separately, and should have stiff 
covers. These covers may be decorated as 
desired. ‘Tell the children to be looking through 
magazines during the week for pretty initial 
letters. Decorative borders, head-pieces and 
tail-pieces will also beautify the books. 

(Say that you will have the paper all cut and 
punched for the next weekday meeting when the 
books can be really started. These children will 
not spend lifetimes over their books, but thinking 
of the monk’s work may make them want to 
preserve the verses and pictures in as beautiful 
shape as possible.) 


ee 


NINETEENTH WEEKDAY 
Making Books 


The purpose in suggesting decorated note- 
books is twofold — first, to preserve the special 
poems, verses, songs and pictures that are used, 
and second, to give the children the joy of creating 
something beautiful. 

The leader should have, before work is begun, 
a sample book at least partly completed to show. 
This should be of loose leaves about the size of 
typewriter paper, put together with rings, and 
with a decorated cover. The large sheets are 
advised because large printing or writing is easier 
for children, also, because pictures of the Perry 
size will be included. 

The sample pages should be done in the simplest 
possible way, with simple decoration, and tacked 
on the board after the children have finished 
admiring the book as a whole. Too much decora- 
tion, besides not being beautiful, will have the 
tendency to discourage the children from making 
books themselves. 

Surprisingly artistic and inexpensive covers 
can be easily made by the children from brown 
paper, crumpled, smoothed out, colored with 
chalky crayon, pasted on heavy mounting board 
and shellaced. Decorations may be added. 

Completed books of one of the experiment 
schools contained the following verses, songs and 
pictures. Long passages were typewritten, and 
the children added initial letters and borders: 

Psalm 95 

Luke 2 : 8-20 

Picture of the shepherds 

Matt. 2 : 1-5, 7-12 

Picture of the Wise-men 

Poem, “ If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy ”’ 

Song, ‘‘ Gentle Child of Nazareth ”’ 

Picture of Jesus in Joseph’s carpenter shop 

Song, “‘ Lord, Who Lovest Little Children ”’ 

Picture of the boy Jesus in the temple 

Verse, ‘ Knew ye not that I must be in my 
Father’s house? ” 

Picture of woman brought before Jesus 

Verse, “ Let him who is without sin among you 
cast the first stone ”’ 

Song, “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,” first 
stanza 

Picture of Jesus healing 

Second stanza of same song 


Picture of Jesus and the children 

Third stanza of song 

Picture of Triumphal Entry 

Fourth stanza of song 

Picture of Jesus stilling the tempest 

Fifth stanza of song 

Picture of Jesus and the lilies 

Sixth stanza of song . 

Picture of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane 

Verse, “ Thy will be done ”’ 

Picture of Peter and John on Easter morning 

Verse, “‘ He is risen ”’ 

Picture of disciples discovering Jesus praying 

Verse, ‘‘ Our Father who art in heaven ” 

Picture of George Washington 

Verse, “‘ God is my helper ” 

Verse, “* He that ruleth his spirit is better than 
he that taketh a city ” 

Verse, the Golden Rule 

Picture of Zaccheeus 

Original story of Jesus and Zaccheeus 

Picture of the widow’s mite 

Picture of the Good Samaritan 

Poem, ‘‘ When Jesus Was a Little Lad ”’ 

Song, ‘‘ God’s Children Live in Many Lands ” 

Picture, ““ The Hope of the World ” (Copping) 

Poem, “ Children Who Walk in Jesus’ Way ” 

Be careful not to let the children work long at 
a time on their books, or the work will grow weari- 
some. If they are interested enough today to 
spend the whole period on it, vary the work. 
Have plenty of magazines and scissors ready, and 
show the children how to look for borders and 
decorative head- and tail-pieces. Get,them inter- 
ested in looking through their magazines at home 
for such decorations. After a few minutes of 
bending over their books, give them an opportun- 
ity to stretch. 

It is advisable to furnish large manila envelopes 
in which the children can carry their pages back 
and forth. 


School A. Leader retold “ The Monk’s 
Bible’ at the children’s request, before 
starting the books. Children were en- 
thusiastic over this work. 

Stuart (exhibiting both eagerness and 
self-control): Gee, but I ran like h —— 
the dickens! 


113 


TWENTIETH SUNDAY 
February 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Continuing the thought in the song, “ Gentle 
Child of Nazareth,” speak of our greatest men. 
This session probably falls between Lincoln’s 
and Washington’s birthdays. To be gentle 
doesn’t mean to be weak. The strongest and 
greatest men have been gentle, too. Ask the 
department if they would call a man great, or 
even admire his strength, if he kicked a dog, if 
he were rough with little children, if he talked 
crossly to his mother, if he treated his friend 
harshly. Gentleness is a part of greatness. 

(Sing as a prayer, or have an assistant sing. 
“Gentle Child of Nazareth,” or let the depart- 
ment sing as a prayer the first and third stanzas 
of “ Lord, Who Lovest Little Children.’’) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Deepening an Impression. (Work on books, 
writing in a stanza of one of the songs just sung, 
decorating the initial letter for the typewritten 
copies, or pasting in a picture illustrating the 
song.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Give to each child to study quietly a picture 
of the boy Jesus in his home. See Perry, Brown 
and Wilde catalogues.) 

Shut your eyes and think of your own house, 
with everybody in it working. What are you 
doing, Mary? John? How do you think Jesus 
brought his heavenly Father’s spirit into his 
home? How can you bring it into yours? (Sing 
repeatedly :) 

“Thou didst live thy live for others, 
Make us helpful, Lord, like thee.” 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Continuing the Thought. Would you have 
liked to live in the little home in Nazareth? 
Why? It was not rich nor beautiful but it was 
a happy home because the spirit of God was there. 
If the spirit of God, which showed itself in Jesus, 
comes into any home today, whether rich or poor, 
would it make a difference in the happiness of 
that home? Can you tell, for instance, when 


the spirit of Jesus is in your home? Doesn’t it 
make a child important to be able to bring it into 
his home and keep it there? 

(Draw on the board a house with four rooms — 
a sitting-room, a dining-room, a kitchen and a 
bedroom, leaving space for a lawn outside. 
Make each room large enough so that various 
activities, good and bad, may be noted in their 
respective places. The class will suggest some of 
them. For example, — Kitchen: Washing dishes, 
tracking in mud, getting ready for company, 
hindering mother, singing at work, filling wood- 
box, feeding pets, quarreling over tasks. When 
the spaces are filled in, let the children erase those 
things which would not be there, if the spirit of 
Jesus was in that home.) 


Report of School B 


(Leader felt that children needed more help 
in self-control, so substituted the following 
seasonal worship service in first departmental 
period.) 


Worship Service on Self-Control 


Conversation. Comparing our resolutions for 
and actual behavior at Valentine party; pointing 
out instances of self-control. 

Further examples of self-control. (1) Girl 
who changed her scowl to a smile; (2) Child who 
fussed with pocket-book, beads, and clothes, and 
finally put her hands behind her saying, “I 
won’t;”’ (3) Incident from Lincoln’s life. 


Song. “ America.” 

Prayer. For help in using self-control during 
the class period. 

Song. “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.” 


Incidents of self-control. From Manual for 
Training in Worship, Hartshorne, pages 54, 
55, 56. 

Bible Reading. 

Prayer. For help in using self-control at all 
times during the week. 


A Card during the Week 


“Dear Teacher, I am going to be a very good 
girl and I am going to use self-control. My 
brother has the grip cold. My doll cannot open 
her eyes this morning.”’ 


114 


TWENTIETH WEEKDAY 
Story and Work 


Nore: This is the first of the programs on 
prayer, arising from the problem reported in 
Sixteenth Sunday, “A Child’s Idea of Prayer 
which Influenced Future Programs.” 


A Happy Valley Story 


THe Wise Man’s Pack 


You will want to know that the whole of 
Happy Valley, as soon as it heard that the wise- 
looking stranger had returned and wished to stay, 
was delighted. ‘“‘ There,” everybody said to 
everybody else, ‘that shows what the Happy 
New Year law has done for us! ”’ 

In Miss True’s school there was the most 
rejoicing. for it was the children whom the 
stranger had watched, and with whose actions 
he had been so pleased. 

“ Will his children come to our school? ” they 
all asked. 

“T hope so, don’t you? ” 

Freddie scratched his head. “It’s quite a 
job we’ve got ahead of us,”’ he remarked. 

Every one agreed, for they all knew that the 
“job” meant trying all the time. It’s very 
hard not to forget, you know yourself. Some- 
times you have the best intentions in the world, 
and — bang, they’re all gone to smash before 
you know it. But all any one can do is try, and 
that is what these children were doing. 

When the covered wagon came down the valley, 
nearly every one felt like going out to meet it, 
and the visitors seemed just as glad to be back 
as the Happy Valley folk were to have them. 
The children joined Miss True’s school at once, 
and made it much more interesting, for they had 
traveled miles and miles with their parents, and 
could tell about all sorts of strange and wonderful 
sights. 

But the most interesting thing about their 
living in Happy Valley was the pack. It was full 
of stories and their illustrations. The wise- 
looking man let the children peep inside, for he 
spent much time at Miss True’s school. There 
were Indians’ bows and arrows and suits, which 
he took out when he told Indian stories. There 
were funny corn-cob dolls and kodak pictures of 
children in front of cabins, which he said he had 
collected from the mountains. There were lovely 
artificial flowers and cans of fruit which children 


115 


in the city had given him, and even cotton, which 
he said some black friends had picked and packed 
for him. 

Right on top was a book in which he wrote 
down stories as he collected them. What story. 
was the last one of all, do you think? It was 
about their own Happy Valley, and told of the 
little boy who looked as though he were going to 
quarrel with his sister, and had, instead, burst 
out laughing. The children were proud to see a 
story of Happy Valley in the pack. 

“ There'll be lots more pretty soon,” said the 
wise man’s children. ‘‘ Father keeps finding 
things that make stories.” 

One Sunday toward the last of February the 
children were having their church-school class. 
Of course it was in the same place as their day 
school, for there was no schoolhouse yet. 

Miss True had given each child a picture of 
George Washington to keep. 

“T like him,” said Junior Foster. ‘‘ He was 
the father of our country. He was a great man.” 

“T’m going to be like him some day,” said 
George Kling. 

‘“ But he was an awfully great man, George,” 
Mary Lewis told him. 

“Well,” insisted George, ‘I’m going to be 
awfully great, too. I’m going to use self-control 
and do it all myself. He had soldiers to help him. 
I won’t even have soldiers.” 

“ He had to have something even more power- 
ful than soldiers,” said a man’s voice suddenly. 
“ Most great men do.” 

It was the wise man, as the Happy Valley 
children still called him, although he had a regular 
name, like any one. He had come now to walk 
home from the church with his two children, and 
heard what George said. 

“ There’s a story in my pack about that very 
thing,” he went on, and as part of the children 
said, “‘ Oh, goody, a story!’ the rest rushed over 
to the pack in the corner. It was left at Miss 
True’s school most of the time, for, as the wise 
man said, the stories and illustrations in it were 
more interesting to her children than to any one 
else. 

“Yes, here it is,” he announced, finding a 
picture of George Washington in his book. The 
children sat down around him to listen. 


116 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


“ This is a story,” he began, “‘ which is told 
about George Washington and a soldier in his 
army. Have you ever pretended you were a 
soldier set to guard your camp at night, and paced 
up and down, up and down, up and down, past 
your imaginary tent, with your gun over your 
shoulder? 

“There was a real soldier in Washington’s 
army who had this todo. Generally nothing very 
exciting happens through the long hours of the 
night watch, but this soldier discovered a secret 
while he was on duty. 

“ Besides being a lonesome thing, it is some- 
times very unpleasant to keep marching up and 
down all night, especially if the weather is bad. 
Tt was more than unpleasant on this night, for it 
was bitterly cold. The ground was covered with 
snow and the wind blew. The soldier could not 
keep warm. His clothes were like the rest of his 
comrades’ — and even General Washington’s 
—ragged and worn. They had all been fighting 
along time. Many were without shoes, and those 
who did not tie bits of skins, or carpet, or rags 
over their feet, had to walk over the hard, frozen 
ground barefooted. They were hungry, too. 
Their provisions had given out and no one had 
enough to eat. 

‘“ You would think that the general and all the 
army would have given up. If they had there 
would have been no United States of America, 
for that is what they were fighting for. 

“Some of the soldiers had decided that they 
could not stand it and had gone home. Others 
said that they would not fight any longer. It 
looked as though, if General Washington were 
going to win, he would have to have more help 
than his soldiers could give. 

“The guard, who was marching back and 
forth, up and down, back and forth, up and 
down, was thinking about all these things. The 
soldiers of the other army had plenty to eat and 
to keep them warm. They had shoes. Per- 
haps it would be better to let them win. Then 
all America would belong to the country that was 
fighting them. It would certainly be easier and 
much more comfortable. The soldier swung 
first one arm back and forth over his chest and 
then the other, to make the blood run through his 
veins. He stamped his feet to keep them from 
freezing, and drew his blanket closer, for his 
uniform was so shabby that he had cut a hole in 
his blanket, and wore it as a coat. 


“Washington was a great leader, the guard 
thought, and suffered as much as the rest. His 
shoes were gone, too, and no doubt he was hungry. 
Why did he go on? Why didn’t he give in? 
What kept the courage in him even after he knew 
how some of his soldiers wanted to leave him? 

“Up and down, back and forth, up and down, 
back and forth — did he hear a voice? He looked 
closely. There behind a tree was some one on 
the frozen ground. Could it be a spy from the 
enemy army? No, a spy would not be in this 
position. It was dark, but as the soldier came 
nearer, he could make out a figure kneeling. 
It was a man praying; praying for strength to go 
on, for courage, for help. And as the soldier 
kept on looking he saw that it was his leader. 
His commander-in-chief, the great Washington, 
was on his knees, praying to his heavenly Father 
to give strength to his army and himself. 

The guard kept on with his marching up and 
down, back and forth. But his thoughts were 
changed. He had found the secret of his general’s 
courage. George Washington had for a friend 
and helper some One more powerful than soldiers, 
some One stronger and greater then himself. 
God was his helper.” 


So George Kling and other Happy Valley 
children understood that great men as well as 
children need to go to God for help. 


Work 

The children may paste in their note-books 
pictures of Washington, and print and decorate 
(illuminate) a verse near it like “God is my 
helper.” 

Report of School A 

Self-Control 

LEADER: What do you think of our class last 
Sunday —for a class that made some good 
resolutions only three weeks ago? 

FRANKIE: We were noisy. 

Fiorrie: We were naughty. 

LAWRENCE: I kept playing with that ventilator 
rope and didn’t pay attention. 

Leaver: Well, what was 

Sunday? 

Stuart: It was hot in here. 

Leaver: It was. And heat always makes us 
noisier. We've just got to realize it. Does that 
mean we have to be noisy whenever we find it 
hot? 


the matter last 


Page. 


———— Se 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 117 


CuitpreN: No, of course not. Mrs. Long, I am going to try to be good. I 
Fiorrie: We ought to do this to ourselves all think we have been silly. I will try.” 
the time (using the deaf and dumb sign for C). The School of the Great Teacher 
George Washington’s picture was added to the 
Report of School B books. 
Self-Control Cup: Let’s put under it, “One of Jesus’ 
MargorigE (dancing in): I’m going to be very pupils.” 
helpful today, Mrs. Long. A picture of the class was already in each book. 
Rutu: I’m going to be self-control today! Cuitp: Let’s put “Some more of Jesus’ 


A note from the one Almost Incorrigible, slipped pupils ” under our picture. 
into the leader’s hand at close of session: ‘‘ Dear 


TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY 
February 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


Call to Worship. (Psalm 122:1, followed 
by, —) 

“This is God’s house and he is here today; 

He hears each song of praise and listens when 

we pray. ” 

Praise and Prayer. (Familiar praise song, 
followed by a prayer ending with, —) 

“ Help us to be truthful, gentle, kind and loving, 

To be like Jesus and follow him alway.” 
“Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.” 


Conversation. In our prayer we asked God 
to help us to be like Jesus. The last two Sundays 
we have been thinking about the kind of boy 
Jesus must have been, why his playmates must 
have liked him, and why mothers must have 
wanted their boys and girls to play with him. 
We said that Jesus could be our Teacher even as a 
child. If we try to be like him in our homes, what 
must we do the minute our father or mother asks 
us to do something? How shall we treat our 
playmates? 

The song that the mothers in Jesus’ land have 
sung to their children for hundreds of years asks 
those same things, doesn’t it? (If the children 
are familiar enough with it, let them sing the first 
stanza now. Otherwise leader or an assistant will 
sing it.) 


“Gentle Child of Nazareth, 
Let thy life, so meek and tender, 
Make us glad obedience render 
To our father and our mother, 
And be kind to one another, 
Gentle Child of Nazareth.”’ 


Song. 


Do you remember when he went to visit the 
temple in Jerusalem, how eager he was to learn 
all the wise men there could tell him? The next 
stanza asks that we may be anxious to learn, too; 
to grow wiser each day. It even calls him our 
teacher, just as we did. He can be our Teacher 
even as a child. 


“Wondrous Child of Nazareth, 
Let thy early love of learning 
Set our youthful spirits yearning 


Daily to be growing wiser, 
Thou our teacher and adviser, 
Wondrous Child of Nazareth.”’ 


I am going to ask God to use the gifts we have 
brought to help more children learn about Jesus, 
that other children as well as ourselves may 
learn to be obedient and kind like our great 
Teacher. 

Offering Service and Prayer 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Old and New Material. We were just re- 
minding ourselves of the time when Jesus’ parents 
found him in the temple after their search. What 
was he doing there? Why did he keep asking the 
wise doctors so many questions? Was he entirely 
satisfied with their answers? They had read 
great books and were considered very wise. But 
you remember that Jesus felt, after all his ques- 
tioning, that they had left out something. It 
seemed to him that he knew God better than 
they did. For one thing, he knew all the time 
that God was his Father. He said to his mother, 
“Didn’t you know I would be in my Father’s 
house?” Other people, even the doctors, did 
not call God Father. They thought of God asa 
ruler and a law-giver, but not as a Father. 

It was that way all through Jesus’ life. He 
knew things about God that others had never 
dreamed. He knew just what God wanted of 
him. And if he was not sure, he had a way of 
finding out. It was his secret. But it was what 
is called an open secret, for those who loved him 
best learned it and told us. 


Story. 
THe SecrET Power or JESUS 


(Bible reference: Mark 1 : 21-38. In this and 
other instances where extended sections of the 
New Testament narrative are incorporated in the 
story, the writer has drawn somewhat freely 
upon the American translation by Edgar A. 
Goodspeed.) 

Four boys, who once thought they might live 
quietly all their lives on the shores of Lake Galilee, 
had left their homes. Instead of knowing each 
morning that when night came they would lie 
in their own beds again, they now had no beds. 


118 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 119 


They might sleep one night on the bare ground, 
another in a stable. Instead of knowing that at 


mealtime there would be plenty to eat, they were 


not even sure of there being a meal. They now 
ate what they could, where they could. 

Instead of sticking to their business with the 
hope of growing rich and important, they had 
given up their business. What was it all about? 
What had happened that their whole life should 
be so changed? 

Why, a man, a plain man as they thought, 
like themselves, had asked them one day to leave 
everything and follow him about. He wanted 
them for friends. He wanted to teach them what 
he knew. No, he was not exactly like them- 
selves. There was something different about 
him. When he spoke to them, they realized that 
he had a secret power. He made them want to do 
whatever he asked. And so these four boys, 
who were men now, had left their homes, their 
families and their business, not alone because he 
asked them to, but because somehow they 
wanted to. They wanted it more than they had 
ever wanted anything. 

They did not know at first how they should live; 
they did not know just how hard it would be; 
they did not know that their great Teacher had 
special work for them to do. All they knew was 
that from the moment they went with him, they 
began to see and hear strange, unbelievable 
things — things at which they could only wonder. 

Instead of being alone with their Teacher they 
found they were in the midst of a crowd of people 
most of the time. They were not surprised that 
every one seemed attracted to their Master; 
they had felt the same attraction themselves. 
But they wondered what it was that gave Jesus 
the power to send the people away happy. He 
seemed to know exactly what each separate 
person needed. Some just looked in his eyes, 
and he smiled back with a smile that seemed to 
speak. Little children ran to him, and he took 
them in his arms. Older children flocked around 
him; he told them stories that made them glad 
they had come. Unhappy people came to him. 
He told them how his Father in heaven had made 
the beautiful world for them. He said his Father 
was their Father, too. He told them that their 
heavenly Father wanted the world to be a happy 
place to live in. He showed them how they could 
help to make it so. And those who had learned 
went away singing in their hearts. Sick people 


were brought to him; he made them well. Some- 
times there would be those in the crowd who 
thought there were evil spirits making them do 
things they couldn’t help. Jesus told the evil 
spirits to come out, and the people were well 
again and able to control themselves. Even bad 
people listened to him. He made them want to 
be good. 

All these things Simon and Andrew and James 
and John saw and wondered at. Was there ever 
such a man? How did he know what every one 
needed? Where did he get his strange power? 

They went into Capernaum, the city on the 
lake where the four men had spent their boyhood. 
It was the Sabbath. In the church, or synagogue, 
the people gathered to hear the law read. Today 
Jesus read it to them. He told them things about 
their Father which they had never heard. But 
they knew they were true. They knew it. They 
never felt that way when the other ministers 
preached to them. Simon and Andrew and 
James and John, too, listened in wonder. They 
knew that what Jesus said was truer than any- 
thing they had ever heard. But they wondered 
how he had found out so much about God. 

Jesus cured sick people that day. It made 
some men very angry, for it was against the law 
to do such things on the Sabbath. Simon and 
Andrew and James and John had always known 
this law, but now they knew suddenly that it was 
not a law that God would have made. If God 
was their Father, and wanted the world to be 
happy, of course he wanted sick people tended on 
the Sabbath as well as any other day. Of course 
he wanted every one to help others every day in 
the week, just as Jesus was doing. But how did 
Jesus know? How did he so perfectly under- 
stand what God wanted? : 

That night Jesus and his friends had beds to 
sleep on, for Capernaum was the home of the 
four. The next morning, very early, a long while 
before day, Jesus rose and went to a lonely place 
near the city. Nobody saw him go. If he had 
been seen, nobody would have guessed what he 
went for. 

After a while the sun came up. People wak- 
ened from their sleep. They remembered the 
man who had talked to them the day before. 
They wanted to hear more. ‘Those who had been 
made well wanted to bring other sick friends 
to the great Healer. Those who had not been 
doing right wanted to see this man again, who 


120 


seemed to look straight into their hearts and 
find their trouble. 

Those who had been angry because Jesus had 
broken the Sabbath day laws wanted to find him 
and arrest him. It seemed as if the whole city 
of Capernaum was hunting for this strange, 
wonderful, unknown man. But Jesus was no- 
where to be found. He was not at the home of 
any of his friends. Not one could tell why their 
Teacher had disappeared. 

“* Let us try to find him,” the four friends said, 
and started out. 

Where could he be? The day before had been 
a long, hard day for their Teacher. He had 
taught and preached and healed constantly. 
He had been many times accused of doing wrong 
by those who would not understand. Perhaps 
he had gone away now to rest for a few days. 
Nevertheless the disciples searched on. 

Suddenly they saw ahead of them a kneeling 
figure. They hurried toward it. Yes, it was 
Jesus! So this was where he was! This was why 
he had disappeared! He had to be alone with 
his Father. God would understand his difficulties 
and help him. He had to make sure that he was 
doing his Father’s will; had to make sure of what 
his Father wanted of him today. 

The four friends stood still. This, then, was 
the way their Teacher found out what God 
wanted. This was what gave him his secret 
power. It was no wonder that he knew his 
heavenly Father so well, if he kept so close to him 
all the time! 

Jesus had not come away to rest. He had 
come away to get strength for a new day’s work. 

“ Master,” said his friends who had sought 
him, “ everybody is looking for you.” 

“Come,” he answered, “let us go to the 
neighboring towns that I may preach in them, too. 
That is why I came out here.”’ 

Picture. (After the story a picture of Jesus 
in prayer may be given each child to add to his 
book. [Wilde’s Bible Pictures, 535.] Under- 
neath the picture may be printed, ‘‘ The Secret 
of Jesus’ Power.”’) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Suggest composing a department prayer to 
be used each Sunday.) 
If great men like George Washington needed 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


God’s help, surely children do. If the greatest 
Teacher of all felt the constant need of talking 
with and listening to his heavenly Father, surely 
God wants all his children to come to him. He 
wants us to tell him when we are glad. It is 
because of his gifts that we are happy; without 
them we would have nothing. 


“‘ Sometimes I say an extra prayer 
Besides the one for which I kneel. 
I stand and look up at the stars, 
And tell our Father how I feel. 
I do not ask for anything, 
I just feel happy through and through; 
I let my heart give thanks and sing, 
Till all the world seems good and true.” 


Jesus gave thanks to God many times a day. 
If we make a prayer to use each Sunday, for what 
shall we thank God? (Write on blackboard the 
children’s suggestions and make a prayer includ- 
ing them.) 


School A. Suggestions were: food, 
clothes, rain and sunshine, snow, mothers 
and fathers, lights, trees, houses, Jesus, 
Sunday school, summer, winter, moon, 
God’s love, grass, holidays, teachers, 
school, songs, church, birds. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 
New Material. Story. 
How Jesus Usep His Secret Power 


(Bible References: Matt. 17:1, 2, 14-20; 
Mark 9 : 14-29; 9 : 38a; Luke 9 : 37-43a.) 

Along a road leading to a mountain came a 
father with his only child. The child was not 
strong, and his father half carried, half led him. 
They were not alone, for many were going in the 
same direction. Some were neighbors of the 
father and child, others were strangers. 

“What a strange look that boy has!” re- 
marked the people. ‘‘ What queer motions he 
makes! ”’ 

“He is dumb,” answered those who knew. 
“He can neither hear not speak. And he has a 
strange trouble. At times he is out of his head, 
and his father is nearly distracted about him. 
He is afraid the child will kill himself in one of his 
queer attacks, for he doesn’t know what he is 
doing. He will jump into a fire and burn himself 
before any one can reach him, or into the lake and 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


nearly drown before he is discovered.” 

“ The poor father! ” said another of the crowd. 
“ Has he taken him to any healers? ” 

“ Oh, yes,” was the answer, “ but no one can 
do anything for him. They are hoping to see the 
new healer, Jesus of Nazareth, about whom every 
one is talking.” 

“TI am going, too,” said the first. “I want to 
hear what this Jesus has to say, and perhaps see 
him do one of his wonder works. But see! The 
dumb child is flinging his arms about! ” 

The people crowded closer around the father 
and his boy. The boy would have hurled himself 
to the ground but strong men held him. 

Suddenly the crowd separated. A man was 
making his way toward the group. 

“ If the boy has an evil spirit,” he was saying, 
“ T can cast it out.” 

The crowd drew closer to watch. Nothing the 
man could do made any difference with the boy. 
The people turned away disappointed. 

“The great Teacher of Nazareth could cure 
him,” said one, and then, seeing a group of men 
on the edge of the crowd, “‘ Why, there are some 
of the great Teacher’s disciples now! Call them 
here. Perhaps they can heal like their Master.” 

The father of the sick boy looked up with hope 
in his eyes. If these men were, indeed, Jesus’ 
disciples, they had probably learned from him 
how to cure the sick. 

“Can you cast out evil spirits?” he asked 
anxiously. 

Andrew and Philip and the others proudly 
answered that they could, that their Master had 
taught them how, and they would be glad to 
heal the poor boy. The crowd pressed in again 
to see the wonder work. The disciples made the 
motions that they had seen Jesus make, and 
called on God to help them. Eagerly the people 
waited and watched, but the child grew no better. 
The disciples tried harder. They wanted to show 
what wonderful works they could do. To cure 
this child who had been given up by doctors 
would prove them to be marvelous indeed. What 
a chance to become famous! You know great- 
ness was always an important question with them. 
They were continually quarreling about it 
among themselves. It was before Jesus had 
washed their feet to show them that he who serves 
others is greatest. Perhaps they even disputed 
now as to which one should have the honor of 
doing this wonder work. Perhaps when one 


121 


failed another was unpleasant about it and took 
his turn. At any rate, try as they would, not 
one of them could cure the dumb boy or comfort 
the poor distressed father. The crowd turned 
away, disappointed a second time. The disciples 
kept on trying, wondering why they could not 
do what they wished, and ashamed. They had 
thought they knew how. 


All of a sudden some one in the crowd pointed 
toward the mountain. “ Look,” he cried, ‘“ there 
he comes — Jesus of Nazareth! ” 


All the people looked. Sure enough, the great 
Teacher with three of his disciples was coming 
down the mountain toward them. There was a 
beautiful light in Jesus’ eyes; but Peter, as Simon 
was now Called, and James and John could have 
told of a light even brighter which they had seen 
the day before. Jesus had gone up on the moun- 
tain to pray, and had taken with him three of 
his most loved disciples. And as he prayed, he 
was so close to God, his Father, that his face 
shone like the sun, and his very clothes seemed 
white and dazzling. The disciples were frightened 
with the glory of it, and did not understand it. 
But they never forgot it. They did not tell about 
it until long after, but now, as people at the foot 
of the mountain gazed up at them, it was easy to 
tell which was Jesus, for part of the light was still 
in his face. They ran toward him, and the 
father of the sick boy cried, “ Master, I brought 
my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit, and when 
it comes upon him he foams at the mouth and 
grinds his teeth. See, he is pining away. I 
asked your disciples to drive it out but they could 
not.” 

As the boy was brought before Jesus, he sud- 
denly fell down to the ground, rolling about and 
foaming at the mouth. 

“How long has he been like this?” Jesus 
asked the father. 

“From his childhood,’ was the answer. 
“Many a time it has thrown him into the fire or 
into the water, and we feared he would die. If 
there is anything you can do, take pity on us and 
help us.” 

Think of saying to Jesus, “ If there is anything 
you can do! ’’ — Jesus, who was so close to God 
that God could work through him in any way he 
wished. Jesus kept close to God so that his 
Father could work through him. That was why 
he had gone up on the mountain to pray. 


122 


The crowd, sure that this time they should not 
be disappointed, closed in about them, and more 
and more gathered in the road. 

“You deaf and dumb spirit,” said Jesus, 
“get out of him, I charge you, and never enter 
him again!” 

And whatever it was that was torturing the 
boy did come out of him. The boy lay quite still 
at first. People thought that he was dead. But 
Jesus took hold of his hand, helped him up, and 
the boy, perfectly well now, went home with his 
happy father. 

Part of the crowd went with him. Others 
lingered for a while to see more of Jesus, but when 
they were all gone, and Jesus was alone with his 
disciples, they asked him, “‘ Why could not we 
drive it out?” 

I think they must have known even before 
Jesus told them. They were not yet close enough 
to their heavenly Father to understand his ways. 
He could not work through them while they were 
thinking so much about themselves. Jesus 
thought only about what his Father wanted, and 
his disciples knew it. So they understood when 
Jesus answered, ‘‘ This kind of thing can only be 
driven out by prayer.” 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Report of School A 

EILEEN (on the way home): I liked that story. 
I know why Jesus could do all these things. 

LEADER: Why? 

EILEEN: Because he prayed so much. He was 
close to the heavenly Father. 

(Florrie, for whom this and the next Sunday’s 
stories were designed, was not present. See ref- 
erence on page 124 to Florrie’s private story-hour.) 


Report of School B 
Children’s Illustrations of Self-Control 

“My brother took my sled, so I couldn’t go 
sliding, but instead of quarreling I went off and 
played with something else.” 

‘““My father scolded me this morning but I 
kept myself from crying.”’ 

“TI called my mother on the telephone from 
school and asked her if I might go home to lunch 
with one of my friends. When she said ‘no,’ I 
didn’t tease, but hung up right away.” 

“The baby was crying upstairs and my mother 
told me to run up and take care of him. I didn’t 
want to but I made myself go up without saying 
anything, and the minute I went into the room, 
he stopped, right off! I think he wanted me.” 

““T don’t say I use my self-control. I just 
don’t use it!” 


TWENTY-FIRST WEEKDAY 
Story and Work for a Missionary Project 


Story from the Wise Man’s Pack 


(With the aim in view of broadening the group’s 
outlook and interesting it in other children, a 
story of one of the mission fields, home or foreign, 
is suggested here, and the opportunity for making 
gifts to send to children elsewhere. Because the 
leader in Vermont expected to visit in June a 
little community in the Virginia mountains, and 
her class was interested in her trip, the southern 
mountaineer children offered a natural objective 
for the class’s interest and gifts. The following 
program, therefore, is one which was used in this 
group.) 

It was a Friday afternoon and the last period 
of school. The children in Miss True’s school 
looked expectantly toward the door, for the wise 
man had promised to tell the school a story from 
his pack. The pack was to be opened and the 
children were to choose from it whatever looked 
as if an interesting tale belonged to it. They 
were very much excited, and had already brought 
the pack from the corner where it usually stayed, 
and unfastened the straps. The door opened, 
and in came their visitor. 


“Well, what shall it be?” he asked as he sat 
on the floor with the pack in front of him and the 
children as close as they could get. 


He tipped the pack over and from the top fell 
out a pile of interesting things. The children 
seized them. “ Has every single thing a story?” 
they asked. 


‘“ Every one,”’ was the answer. 

Oh, what riches! Stories upon stories! 

“What a funny doll !” cried Mary Fleetwood, 
holding it up. ‘‘ Why,” she went on, “ it’s made 
of a corn-cob!”’ For she had lifted the skirt to 
examine the clothes. 

“That’s just what it is,” said the wise man. 
“T once made it for my children and it was so 
interesting they keep it in my pack. Shall I 
tell you about Danny and Iona? ” he asked. 

(Then follows “‘ Jemina Corn-cob,” from Little 
Neighbor Stories, by Colson, also in The May- 
flower Program Book, program seventeen. After 
the story the class will probably wish to start 
making gifts for the children they have heard 
about. An Indian, Negro or Chinese story may 
quite as easily be found in the pack.) 


Report of School A 


Florrie’s Loss of Self-Control 


It was one of Florrie’s bad days. She began 
by throwing water in Lawrence’s eye. Lawrence 
started to retaliate. 


Leaper: Lawrence! Let’s see how. you're 
going to take it. 

LAWRENCE (blinking): Gee, Florrie, that was 
some aim! 


Florrie teased and bothered every one; de- 
manded (and got) special attention to the exclu- 
sion of others; took the best seat at the table; 
wanted most of the crayons and patterns; com- 
plained about noise, making just as much herself; 
twice threatened to go home; once got her coat 
on, but since nobody urged her to stay, thought 
better of it and took it off; “told on ”’ every one 
who bothered her; paid back in good measure 
every slight offense toward her; ended with 
knocking Frankie’s head against a table. 

Leader at another table, hearing the commo- 
tion, jumped toward Frankie, who, enraged by 
pain, had started for Florrie. She succeeded in 
steering him to the kitchen, where she bathed 
his head as he wept copiously. 


Leaver: That was a bad bump, wasn’t it? 
I didn’t see how it happened, but I’m sorry you 
got hurt. You know this class is like a little bit of 
life. All your life you’re going to get hard 
knocks—everybody does. Sometimes the knocks 
are on our heads, sometimes on our feelings.. The 
way you take them shows what kind of a man you 
are. If you only want to hit back and get even, 
you're going to be a little, unimportant man, 
but if you just take the hurt and remember that 
you’re bigger than anything that can come to 
you, and pay no attention to it, you’ll be a big, 
important man that people will look up to and 
respect. You wanted to hurt Florrie at first, 
but you don’t now, do you? You're using your 
self-control finely. (He had stopped crying.) 

FRANKIE (gulping down the last sob): Thank you, 
Miss Bradley, that’s enough. 

Stuart (popping in): Hey, Frankie, what 
happened? 

Leaver (before Frankie could speak): Why, you 
see, Stuart, the table that Frankie was sitting 
near rose right up and hit him — “‘ whacked him 


123 


124 


one” on the brow, like that! Wasn’t it rude of 
the table? (as both boys chuckled, whispering to 
Frankie) You tell any one that, who asks you! 

Leaver: Florrie, get on your things and go 
home. 

Fiorrie (slamming the door): ll never come 
near this class again! 

CHILDREN (unanimously and heartily): I hope 
she doesn’t! 

Boy: She’s worse’n any boy here! 

AnoTHER: I just hate Florrie. 
everything. 

Leaver: What do you suppose we're having 
this class for? 

ANNE: To learn. 

Leaver: To help each other. Florrie needs a 
lot of help. What can we do for her when she 
comes back? (Didn’t know herself!) 

Joun: She said she wasn’t coming, and I hope 
she doesn’t. 

LeapER: J hope she doesn’t, too, the way she 
was this morning. Does she have to act this way? 

Cuitp: No, she can use her self-control. 

Leaver: Are we using ours if we just let our- 
selves hate her and want her to stay away? 
And how can we help her if she stays away? 
(Children not interested.) 

LEADER: Did you see how Frankie took it? 

Boy (admiringly): He started to hit her back, 
but he didn’t! (Children join in admiration. 
Note the lasting satisfaction over Frankie’s self- 
control as reported in Thirty-Fifth Sunday.) 

Leader felt particularly chagrined because 
Frankie was hurt during the class, for the night 
before his mother had said, ‘‘ Frankie is a different 
boy since he’s begun going to the class. He’s 
so tender and thoughtful, and wants to help. 
When I was in the hospital I felt so happy and 
safe about him Saturdays, knowing he was at his 
class.” So she telephoned at noon to inquire 
about Frankie’s headache. It was some time 
before she could make Mrs. Norton understand. 
Frankie had come home and never mentioned it! 

After dinner the leader called up Florrie’s 
mother and asked if Florrie could meet her at the 
church to talk over some things. 

FiLorrize’s Motruer: What is it? 
thing happened? 

Leaver: Yes, but I don’t know how it hap- 
pened nor whether Florrie was entirely to blame, 
but I sent her home and I want to straighten it 
out with her. I think maybe she feels a little 


She spoils 


Has some- 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


sorry by now, and would like a chance to make up 
for it. 

Fiorrtie’s Moruer: Isn’t it funny, she didn’t 
tell me a word about it! She usually tells me 
whether she’s been naughty or good. Yes, she 
may come. I'll call her. 

Leaver: Hello, Florrie, this is Miss Bradley. 
We didn’t have a very nice class this morning, 
did we? 

Fiorrie: No. 

Leaver: I thought perhaps you were sorry for 
your part in it, and would like to make up for it a 
little by helping me this afternoon at the church. 
We're going to make toys next week. You could 
trace the patterns off on the wood, so they’d be 
ready to work on. 

Fiore: Yes, I’ll come, Miss Bradley. 

She came, but appeared triumphant rather 
than sorry. Told gleefully just how she hit 
Frankie’s head against the table. Leader told 
her how Frankie took it. Florrie was much 
impressed. 

Leaver: He hasn’t even told his mother. 

Fiorrie: I’d have told mine. I’m glad he 
didn’t. 

While Florrie was tracing off patterns leader 
read to her the last Sunday’s stories which she 
had missed. (See page 122.) 

Fiore: I’m having a lovely time. I’mso glad 
you invited me down here. Now I'll saw these. 

LEADER: Oh, no, that’s for the class to do next 
Saturday. I asked you to do this work because 
I thought you’d be sorry for what you did this 
morning and would want to do something for the 
class. But I’m afraid you aren’t as sorry as I 
thought you’d be. (Hoping to get her on popu- ~ 
larity.) What children do you like best to play 
with, Florrie? 

Frorrie: Oh, Anne and Betty and Rita. 

Leaper: Why do you like Anne? 

Fuorrie: Well, I don’t like her so well. 
always saying, “O Florrie, don’t fight!” 
I’ve got to fight! 

Leaver: Why do you have to? 

Fiorrie: Because my father tells me to. 

Leaver: He fells you to! 

Fiorrie (enjoying leader's horror): Yes, he 
says I’ve got to hit back! He says if any one hits 
you, punch them in the nose. 

Further futile bits of conversation. Leader 
gave up, and went home to meditate. (See 
Twenty-Second Sunday, ‘* On Quarantining.’’) 


She’s 
And 


TWENTY-SECOND SUNDAY 
February-March 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Use the department prayer composed last 
Sunday. Ask if the children have ever noticed 
how hymns pray the same things as our prayers. 
Sing ‘‘ Gentle Child of Nazareth,” or ‘‘ Lord, Who 
Lovest Little Children,” or read the words of a 
new praise song on the board, such as, ‘‘ My God, 
I thank thee, who hast made the earth so bright.” 
If there are reasons for giving thanks mentioned 
in the song which are not mentioned in the 
children’s prayer, suggest enriching this.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Making Use of the Familiar. (Let the re- 
view of last Sunday’s stories of the secret of 
Jesus’ power take the form of a dramatization. 
The leader will take the part of a visitor in a city 
like Capernaum, who has heard that there is a 
wonderful man in town. She asks questions to 
bring out the children’s answers. They, of course, 
will be citizens who are familiar with Jesus’ 
ways, or disciples.) 


What School A Did 


LreapER: Do you know the wonder worker of 
whom every one is talking) 

CumtpREN: Yes. We’re his disciples. 

LEADER: Where does he live? 

Cup: He doesn’t live anywhere. 

Leaver: Does he really travel up and down the 
country not knowing where he will sleep from one 
night to another? 

CuiLp: Yes, we go with him. 

LEADER: What does he do? 

CHILDREN: He teaches. 
cures sick people. 

Leaver: Does he get high pay for it? 

CHILDREN: No! 

LEADER: Then why does he do it? 

Cuitp: He wants to help people. 

LEADER: Does he really do such wonderful 
things? 

Cuitp: Oh, yes! Nobody else can do them. 

Leaver: Can’t you disciples? 

Cuitp: We can do some things, but not all. 

LEADER: I hear he says God is our Father. 

Cuitp: He is. 


He preaches. He 


LeapER: But how does he know? 

Cuiip: He’s so close to God, he knows. 

Leaver: I hear he breaks the Sabbath day 
laws and heals people. 

Cuitp: It’s all right to do that. 
people to be well. 

LEADER: But how does Jesus know all these 
things? 

Cup: God tells him. He prays all the time. 

Stuart: Not all the time, you dumb-bell — 
he worked, too. 

ANNE: We said we wouldn’t call each other 
names. 

Stuart: Well, I wasn’t there when you said it. 
How could he heal people if he went off and prayed 
all the time? 

FLorriE: He doesn’t have to go off and pray. 
He can just pray to himself. God knows people’s 
thoughts. 

Leaver: You mean you think he might pray 
while he’s working? 

CHILDREN: Yes. 

LreaperR: Why can’t you disciples do what he 
does? 

Cuitp: We're not as close to God as he is. 
We don’t pray enough to keep close to him. 

Leaver: Well, I pray a great deal, and so do 
my friends. We’re asking God for things all the 
time. 

Cup: Oh, but that isn’t the way Jesus prays! 
He prays so he can help other people. 

Leaver: Not to have God make him rich or 
famous? 

CuILp: Oh, no! He doesn’t think about him- 
self. He helps others all the time. 

Leaver: Then I suppose God wants people to 
help others— you say Jesus does what God 
wants. I wonder, if I prayed the right way and 
kept close to God, would J be able to understand 
what God wants, and have power to do it? 

CuILpREN: Well—a little. But not like 
Jesus. Nobody was ever like Jesus! 


God wants 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


We have been talking about prayer. We have 
made up a prayer of our own. We know that 


125 


126 


Jesus prayed a great deal, and that was what 
kept him close to God. 

(Sing “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,” as a 
reminder of the One we pray to be like. Then let 
the children suggest any prayer songs they know.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Introducing New Thoughts. (Show the 
picture, ‘‘ Jesus Teaching His Disciples to Pray,”’ 
Primary Picture Set No. 3, International Graded 
Lessons. Notice the eagerness of the disciples, 
who have probably talked about this subject 
among themselves.) 

You've often wished you had been back there 
among Jesus’ disciples, able to ask the Great 
Teacher anything you liked. 


Stuart: I wish it right now. 
Exinor: I do, too. 


Jesus had taught them that his power came from 
his Father in heaven; they had often seen him go 
away to pray. What did he say when he prayed? 

Can’t you imagine asking each other questions 
like that? Wouldn’t you like to know just how 
he prayed, so you could have his power? They 
wanted to be like Jesus, too. If prayer was 
what brought him close to God, they wanted to 
pray. But what should they say? 

Let’s think of the different kinds of prayers 
they could make. (Use blackboard.) What 
kind of things do you ask the heavenly Father 
for, Gerald? Mary? Does God want his chil- 
dren to come to him when they’re glad or sad? 


School A. Frankie: No, we’re not good 
enough. 

Leaver: But Jesus said he was our 
Father. That means the Father of bad or 
good children alike. Doesn’t a father love 
his children even if they’re naughty? 

Fiorrie: He knows it without our tell- 
ing him. 

Leaver: But your father knows what’s 
troubling you, and so does your mother. 
Don’t they like to have you come to them 
about everything whether they know it 
already or not? You see that keeps you 
close to them, telling them about every- 
thing. When I was a little girl my father 
was away for years and years. But he 
wanted me to keep close to him so he wrote 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


me letters and I wrote back and told him 
about everything; whether I was sad or 
glad, whenever I wanted something very 
badly, whenever I had good marks at 
school. He wanted me to come to him with 
everything. It kept us close together. 


But fathers, besides wanting the love of their 
children, want to help them. God wants that 
more than anything else. Do children ever ask 
their fathers for what would not help them? 
What would a wise father do about a request like 
that? Who knows better what would be good 
for children, the children or their parents? Do 
you think God knows better than we do what 
is best for his world? 


Let’s pretend again that we are back in Jesus’ 
time. Perhaps the disciples are starting on a 
long walking trip with their Master. 

“T hope it will be pleasant,” Peter says. 
“ Let us ask God not to have it rain.”” What do 
you think about that kind of a prayer? 


ANNE: That’s selfish. The flowers and 
trees need the rain. 


Another disciple, Philip, maybe, said, ‘‘ But, 
Peter, supposing some one else wanted it to rain! 
God couldn’t answer both of those prayers.” 

“Then how shall we pray?’ asks Peter. And 
if their Teacher hears, he would say, I think, 
‘“ What weather we have is not important, Philip 
and Peter. The important thing is the way we 
do our work, whatever the weather is.” 


It was the day before a picnic. Bobby said to 
Betty, “ Oh, I hope it will be pleasant!” Betty 
said, ‘* Let’s ask God to keep the rain away.” 

I’m going to show you why God can’t answer 
Betty’s prayer as she expects. (Show or draw 
roughly an outline map of the United States.) 
He has made a world that is governed by laws, 
and there are laws about what sends rain and wind 
and all changes of weather. 

If you go to Washington, the capital of our 
country, you will see what they call weather 
charts. They are very large maps and in frames 
with glass over them. Each day the “ weather 
man,” the man who studies the signs of the 
weather, paints on the glass little dots and arrows 
and lines which tell what the weather all over the 
country, north, south, east and west, will be 
that day. 

(Indicate following on map.) The map may 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


show that there is a storm out west, but that it is 
cold and clear in Vermont. Down here (indicate 
southern section) you can see that it is not rain- 
ing, but that the air is heavy. 


ANNE: That means it’s going to rain. 

LEADER: It does. It’s one of God’s 
laws that when the clouds are heavy like 
that the rain will soon fall. 


When the air is like that, moisture is gathering 
into clouds which will soon become so heavy that 
the clouds will let the moisture fall in big rain- 
drops. There are laws which make the rain-drops 
fall when the air is in a certain condition. The 
“weather man” knows those laws; he can tell 
when the clouds will let down the rain. 

On the chart there will be many little arrows 
which show that a big storm out west is headed 
straight for the east. Certain conditions in the 
air started the storm, and certain conditions help 
it to travel. The marks on the chart show what 
all these conditions are, and the “‘ weather man ”’ 
can tell ahead what will happen to the weather in 
different places, for he knows the laws. 

The next day the chart will look different. 
Conditions have changed. Storms have moved 
on; so the “ weather man” has to make a new 
picture. That big storm out west is in Chicago 
now, and the arrows show it traveling nearer and 
nearer New York and Vermont. You look at that 
part down here, where yesterday you saw the 
clouds gathering, and you see that today the rain 
is falling. Sometimes storm clouds are gathering 
for days before it really rains. Sometimes a 
storm travels just so far and no farther because of 
certain conditions in the air that it meets. Some- 
times it travels so fast that the “‘ weather man,” 
counting on how many miles it is traveling in an 
hour, can tell you just when a storm starting here 
(indicating far west) will reach here (east). 

The storms, the wind, the rain, all are acting 
according to God’s law for them. God’s laws 
do not change. That is why the “ weather man ”’ 
can read the signs in the atmosphere and tell you 
what they mean. He knows that the weather 
changes according to God’s laws, which are 
always the same. 

So do you see why it is that God cannot 
answer a prayer like Betty’s? Perhaps Betty 
lives here (east) and a storm which started way 
out here (indicate) has almost reached Betty’s. 
Could God stop it when Betty prayed, if, accord- 


127 


ing to his laws, the storm is bound to come? 
Perhaps he could, but would you like to live in 
a world where God would change his laws for 
every picnic, or every prayer some one feels like 
making? 


FiorriE: Different people might be 
praying for different kinds of weather at 
the same time! 


You couldn’t depend on anything, could you? 
His winds blow because of conditions that are 
far back of today. His winds, rain, sun and stars 
obey his laws, which never change. 

We said a moment ago that God knew, better 
than we do, what is best for his children. Which 
do you think is better for his children — a world 
where he answers every single prayer his children 
make, whether wise or foolish; or a world where 
his children can depend on laws which were made 
for their good, and which never change? 

We can’t change God’s laws, but (print on 
board) We Can CHance Our Prayers, and 
(print) Our Prayers Witt Cuance Us. 

Instead of praying for a pleasant day we can 
pray that whether it rains or shines — what? 
(We may be cheerful, good, helpful.) Instead of 
asking for money and presents which we may 
want, we may pray that we shall use whatever 
he gives us as he would want us to. 

Instead of asking that God will do what we 
want him to, if we pray as Jesus prayed, we'll 
ask that we may do what he wants us to do. 


LEADER: Do you see the difference? 
CHILDREN: Yes. 

LeapErR: Do you really mean that? 
Boys: Sure, that’s easy. 


The disciples came to Jesus. They wanted to 
know how to pray, and this is what Jesus told 
them: ‘When you pray, say, ‘Our Father, 
your will be done, not ours.’ ” 


School A. Leader showed an “ illumi- 
nated’’ page of her “Bible” (as the 
children called their note-books), Hof- 
mann’s Jesus in the Garden,” and the oppo- 
site page, ‘‘ Thy will be done.” Suggested 
getting pictures for all. 

FiorriE: I have forty-one cents to pay 
for materials for this class. 

School B. Boys so interested in the 
weather map, they went directly down to 
the drug store to study one there. 


128 
Report of School A 


Quarantining 


Leader asked the class to remain after the 
session. 


Leaver: Florrie, if you were the Board of 
Health, what would you do if a case of measles 
broke out in town? 

Fiorrie: Shut him up in the house and not 
let him come out. 

Stuart: Put a sign on his door. 

LeapER: What kind of a sign? 

ANNE: Quarantine. 

Leaver: What for? 

ANNE: So it wouldn’t hurt anybody else. 

LreapvER: Do you know what’s done to a man 
or woman who does a wicked thing — breaking 
a law? 

Cuitp: They shut ’em up in prison. 

LEADER: Yes, to protect other people. Others 
aren't safe while he is around. How would you 
like to have a quarantine rule for our class? 
Yesterday a very sad thing happened. (Florrie, 
sitting near a cupboard, had opened cupboard door. 
Her head now disappeared behind it.) Some one 
hurt some one else. So long as Florrie — or any 
of you — can do things like that, it is not safe for 
the rest of us. What do you think about putting 
Florrie in quarantine for a little while, and asking 
her not to come back until she’s cured? 

SEVERAL (lo leader’s amazement): No! 

LEADER: Why not, Anne? 

Anne: Because I might be the one that did it, 
and I wouldn’t like to be quarantined. 

LEADER: But would it be fair to the rest to 
allow you to mix with us when at any time you 
might hurt one of us? 

ANNE (reluctantly): No. 

Stuart (twisting on the piano stool): I think 
it’s a good idea. 

Leaver: I mean this for all of us, Stuart. 
There was a day when it was unsafe for people to 
be with you. 

Stuart (subdued): I know it. 

Leaver: If you hadn’t come back as you did, 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


you might have been quarantined. I’m going 
to ask Florrie to quarantine herself next Saturday. 
Everybody else bring your saws. We’ll start 
the toys for the southern children. Florrie has 
traced them all off for you. I thought she did 
it because she was sorry. But she wasn’t, after 
all, I’m afraid. Florrie, how do you know when 
you're well from the measles? 

Fiorrie: The red marks go away. 

LeapER: Yes, there are signs. There will be 
signs to show when you are well from the horrid 
thing you had yesterday. Does anybody know 
what the signs are? 

CuitprEN: If she says she’s sorry? If she 
acts different? 

Leaver: Not just if she says she’s sorry, but 
if she acts sorry. We can tell. We'll be glad 
when you're well again, Florrie, and are out of 
quarantine. 

F Lorrie (as other children are leaving): I am. 

Leaper: Are what? 

FLorRIE: Sorry. 

Leaper: Truly, Florrie, or are you just saying 
it because you want to do the sawing Saturday? 

FLorRIE: I was yesterday. 

LreapErR: I’m sorry I didn’t know it. You see 
you didn’t show me that you were. Can you 
think of something special that you can do for 
Frankie next Saturday to show him you’re really 
sorry? (to children) Florrie says she’s sorry about 
yesterday. She says she was sorry before, but I 
couldn’t tell. Shall we give her another chance 
and put off the quarantine? 

CHILDREN: Yes! 

FLorrIE (coming up to leader, with light in her 
eyes): Miss Bradley, I’m going to think all the 
week of something to do for Frankie to show him! 
Making up for a Neglected Opportunity 

It was communion Sunday. (See report at 
end of Fourteenth Sunday.) Leader took Stuart 
and Tommy to the service. They were much 
impressed, and shocked at noises downstairs 
made by early comers. Minister used the words, 
“This do in remembrance of me,” so afterward 
the boys went up to examine the communion 
table with the words carved on it. 


TWENTY-SECOND WEEKDAY 
Story 


A Happy Valley Story 
From THE WisE Man’s Pack 

(To bring home another clause of the Lord’s 
Prayer, “ Thy kingdom come.’’) 

“What’s this, Mr. Wise Man?” asked Dan, 
pulling a beautiful little carved chest from the 
pack. 

“Oh, that’s my box of the four kingdoms! ”’ 
answered the wise man. 

“The four kingdoms,” repeated the children 
gathered round him. “Has it a story to it? 
May we open it? Where did you get it?” For 
it had a mysterious fragrance about it that some- 
how made it seem to belong to the far away. 

“It came from a far-off country,” he said, 
answering the last question first. “ It was given 
me by a friend who told me the story of the 
Happiest Kingdom.” 

“Oh, goody!” said the children, “‘ then it has 
a story. Please tell it to us. Why, the box has 
layers in it!”’ For when Dan took off the cover 
the wise man lifted off one layer after another. 


Cuitp: Like a Mah-Jongg box. 


In the first one was a large, shiny, gold coin. 

‘““Qo-o-o!”’ said the children. ‘‘ Why don’t 
you spend it?” 

The second held a small sword with a glistening 
steel blade. 

“ Br-r-r-r!”” shivered the children, ‘ that’s 
sharp and horrid.” 

The third held a little reed pipe. The wise 
man took it out and the first time he played on it 
made every single child jump up and begin to 
dance. 

The fourth and bottom layer was the strangest 
of all, for there lay a roll of bandages. 

“Tell us about it! ’’ the children cried, and this 
is the story the wise man told: 


? 


The Happiest Kingdom 


There was once a child who set out to seek, not 
a fortune, but a home. 

“What kind of a home do you wish, my child? ”’ 
asked one old, old man on the way. 

“T want a home in a happy kingdom where I 
shall find friends,”’ said the child. 

“ That way lies the Happiest Kingdom,” said 
the old, old man, pointing toward the sunset. 


“Oh, I shall like that!” cried the child, for the 
sky was like gold. He hurried on, climbing a hill 
on the way. When he had come to the top he 
looked down upon a dazzling sight. Below, as 
far as he could see, were noble buildings, all white 
and gold. He ran down the hill, repeating, “ I 
shall like to live here! I shall like to live here! ”’ 

He found gold pieces lying on the street and 
beautifully dressed children flinging coins about 
as if they did not understand their value. 

The child gleefully stooped to pick up a hand- 
ful, but the others saw him and snatched the coins 
from him. “It’s all ours,” they cried angrily. 
Let it alone.” 


Lyman: Just the way we grabbed until 
we saw how horrid it was. 


The child looked at the others and forgot about 
the gold. 

‘You don’t look happy,” he said. 

“ Happy!’ they repeated, amazed. 

“Isn't this the Happiest Kingdom? ” 

“This is the Richest Kingdom,” was the 
answer. 


The child wondered why, if it was the Richest 
Kingdom, there was not enough gold for him, too, 
but as soon as he saw his mistake he hurried down 
the road leading out of the kingdom. 

Very soon he began to meet guards stationed 
in the road. Each guard was armed with a gun 
and a sword. 


“Why do you stand here? ”’ he asked. 
“To protect the people in our kingdom,” 
answered the soldiers. 


“Oh,” said the child to himself as he hurried 
toward the gate, “ this must be a happy kingdom 
indeed, where the weak are protected! ”’ 

But suddenly he heard cries and clashing of 
arms, and as the road curved he came upon two 
armies at war with each other. A bullet whipped 
by the child’s head, another grazed his arm, and 
a third struck him in the leg. As he fell soldiers 
rushed by. 

“Help me!” he called to them. 
hurt!” 

They gave him only a glance and hastened on. 
“We have no time,” they called back; “ we 
must fight.” 


** See, I am 


129 


130 


“Ts this the Happiest Kingdom?” asked the 
child of the next soldiers. 

‘“‘ Far from it,” was the answer, “ but it is the 
Mightiest Kingdom on earth.” 


School B. ‘ Mightiest’ had to be 
explained. 


“* Oh!” said the child, disappointed, and crawled 
among some bushes until he should feel stronger. 

When he started on again he did not know which 
way to go, but reaching a cross-roads, he thought 
he heard sounds of music and gay voices coming 
from one direction. 

“The Happiest Kingdom at last!” he said to 
himself. He was sure of it when he came nearer. 
Gaily dressed children were dancing in and out of 
arches made by the arms of others, and they 
laughed and sang as the piper piped for them to 
dance. 

‘* Oh, see! ’’ cried one, “‘ there is a child coming 
toward us. One more will make the dance all the 
merrier! ’’ And they ran down to greet the child 
and make him join their dance. 

But when they saw that he was limping, and 
that an arm hung by his side, they took no interest 
in him. 

““He is wounded,” they said. ‘‘ Come, let us 
go back. He could not dance. He has only 
interrupted our pleasure. He has no place in the 
Gayest Kingdom,” and they turned and left him. 

The child, tired and lame, went slowly back to 
the cross-roads and started down another path. 

** Oh, you are hurt!’ cried some one, suddenly 
running to his side. “‘ Let me bathe and bind 
your arm!” 

As the child turned he looked into the face of a 
black-skinned girl. She was already tearing her 
kerchief into strips and wetting one in a nearby 
brook to bathe his arm. 


Fiorrte: Like that — that — 
ELINoR AND ANNE: The Good Samaritan! 
Joun: Yes, I was just going to say that. 


As she bound up his wounds he thought he had 
never seen such a lovely face. He wondered if 
all those whose skin was black were as kind and 
beautiful. 

“He is lame,” said a tall, brown-faced youth. 
“ Let us carry him to the House of Hope, where he 
may be cared for.’’ And he tenderly lifted the 
child in his arms. 


Lyman: Was that their hospital? 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


“You both have the same light in your 
eyes,” said the child, as he smiled gratefully, 
first at the black girl and then at the brown-faced 
youth. 


Justina: That was just kindness he saw. 

ExizaABetH: My goodness, Justina! you 
make me so cross in school sometimes 
when you're silly, but I guess today we'll 
have to say, “‘ Hurrah for Justina! ” 


“ They belong to the same kingdom,” explained 
a third child, whose skin was like a shining, yellow 
leaf. ‘‘ Are you hungry? Here is something to 
eat. I wish there were more, but it is all I had.” 

Now the child was indeed hungry, and he 
eagerly held out his hand for the bow] of steaming 
rice offered him. 

“The light is in your face, too,” said the child, 
in wonder. ‘“ And yours,’ — for a boy with hair 
as black as a raven’s wing and skin as richly red 
as polished copper was covering him with the fur 
of a wild animal. 

So they came to the House of Hope. 

“When your wounds are healed,’ said his 
friends, ‘‘ we shall be waiting for you to play with 
us and work with us.” 

“What kingdom is this?” asked the child. 
“You look so different, but you are all so kind.” 

“ The Kingdom of Love,” was the answer. 

“T should like to know your king,” said the 
child. “He must be great and good. Is he 
rich? ” 

‘* He was born in a stable,” said the children. 


Appreciative whisper: Oh — 


They left him in the care of fair-faced women 
who made his wounds more comfortable. 

‘““ May I stay here? ” asked the child before he 
slept. ‘‘It is a happier place than where they 
fight, or dance all day, or pick up money only to 
fling about. I thought when I came that this 
must be the Happiest Kingdom, but they tell 
me it is the Kingdom of Love.”’ 

‘There is no difference,” quietly answered the 
woman by his side. 

‘“* How big is the kingdom ?” asked the child. 

“Tt reaches out to a new place every day. 
It is everywhere there is love.” 

“* How does it spread so fast? ”’ asked the child 
again. 

Berry (not waiting for the story to go on): 
Why, because we love each other. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


“Those who love their King, born in a stable, 
carry it with them.” 

** T shall be one to spread it, too,” declared the 
child, as he closed Bis ayes in happy sleep. 


The wise man had stopped. The story was 
finished. Dorothy Fairchild softly patted the 
bandages in the bottom layer. 

“You'd know right away, wouldn’t you,” she 
said, ““ whose kingdom it was where people were 
helping each other? ” 


Report of School B 


The children loved this story. They put a 
picture of the box in their books, drew the four 
symbols and printed what they stood for. Jus- 
tina added to hers, ‘‘ God loves all good children. 
They belong to the Kingdom of Happiness. 
God loves you well.” Another child illustrated 
the entire story. 

They would not go home, so after singing, 
“Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,” leader showed 
pictures, and they in turn told the stories of what 
was done by the King of the Happiest Kingdom. 


Report of School A 
Blunders of Leader 

Early comers went eagerly to work on “‘ Bibles.” 

Leaver: Don’t get settled at anything that’s 
going to take too long, for it’s nearly time to 
begin the class. 

(QueRY: Who was she to say that “ the class ” 
had not already begun?) 

Joun: I’m going to work on my book. That’s 
what I came for. 

Leaper: We do work here, John, and there’ll 
be plenty of time afterward, but you know first 
we have other things. 

Joun: I’m going to work on my book. That’s 
what I came for. 

LEapDER: John, of course you can stay here and 
work on your book, you can do anything you 
want to, but all the rest are coming now to hear 
the story, and it’s more fun if we do things to- 
gether. Haven’t you enough of this (making sign 
for “‘control’’) to help the rest of us? 

Joun: Oh, well, I'll come and hear the story! 

(Having promised a story, the leader promptly 
switched off to practise of new song, “ Gentle 


131 


Child of Nazareth.” Bored at once, John 
threatened to go back to his book.) 

Leaver: Who'll tell our visitor why we're 
singing this song? 

ANNE: Because we want to be like Jesus. 

Leaver: Yes, but I meant how we happen to 
have the song. 

ANOTHER: It came from the land where Jesus 
lived. 

Joun: Oh, I’m going back! 

Leaver: John, you weren’t here last Sunday 
when we had this story, were you? Who’ll tell 
John the story? 

(Florrie volunteered to tell ‘‘ The Secret Power 
of Jesus.” Stuart followed with the story, 
“ How Jesus Used His Secret Power,” making it 
very graphic with, “ He took a fit right in front 
of Jesus.’’) 

Leaver: And after they’d all gone away, what 
did the disciples ask Jesus? 

Cup: ‘‘ Why couldn’t we do it?” 

Leaver: And what did he answer? 

FRANKIE: He said they weren’t close enough 
to God. 

(Leader referred to the prayer on the black- 
board.) 

JouN (bored again): Oh — prayers! I’m going 
back to my book. 

Leaver: All right, John, you go to your book, 
and we'll go on talking. (To others) Let’s whis- 
per so John will wonder what we're saying. 

(Leader talked about prayer to be made to- 
morrow. John went behind screen ostensibly to 
work, but poked head around to try to catch 
what he was missing. Thus he was twice effect- 
ually prevented from concentrating on work that 
fascinated him.) 

FRANKIE: I wasn’t here last Sunday, but I'll 
be thinking of something to say and tell you 
tomorrow. 

Leaver: Now I'll tell you the story I promised. 

(John promptly joined the group. See how 
leader profited by her blunders, Twenty-Fifth 
Weekday, Report of School A.) 

Work 

After the story children working on toys went 
to the kitchen. Two stayed to work on Bibles. 
As they worked, leader told again “‘ The Monk’s 
Bible ” at their request. 


TWENTY-THIRD SUNDAY 
March 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


The Lord’s Prayer. (Speak of this as the 
prayer Jesus taught.) 

Picture Study. (Show pictures of Samuel, 
David and Daniel, praying. Repeat, with the 
children’s help, prayer verses they might have 
said, such as, — “‘ The day is thine, the night 
also is thine;”’ ‘‘ What time I am afraid, I will 
put my trust in thee;”’ “ Help me, O Lord my 
God;”’ ‘‘ Thou, Lord, hast made me glad.’’) 

These people never used the prayer we have 
just said. Nobody had taught them to say, 


“Our Father.” They called God King, and 
Lord, and Jehovah. It was long before Jesus 
lived. 


Years after, Jesus’ disciples wanted to learn 
Jesus’ way of praying. They went to him and 
said, “‘ Lord, teach us to pray.”’ (Show “ Jesus 
Teaching the Disciples to Pray,’’ Primary Picture 
Set No. 3, International Graded Lessons.) 

So Jesus taught them. He did not begin, “ O 
Jehovah,” or “ Great God,” or “ Lord of Hosts; ”’ 
he began, “Our Father in heaven, may your 
name be loved!’’ Then he asked for what he 
wanted. What he wanted and what he was 
working for was that everybody in the world 
should be happy and good, so the whole world 
should be a happy kingdom — God’s kingdom. 
He prayed, “Let your kingdom come.” In 
God’s kingdom everybody would try to please 
the Father and do what he wanted. He prayed, 
“* And let your will be done.”’ 

Years and years have passed, and people ever 
since have prayed, “Our Father, who art in 
heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom 
come. Thy will be done.” I have a picture of 
two people who are speaking to their Father in 
heaven. (Show “ The Angelus.’’) The ringing 
of the church bell made them think of him. Per- 
haps they are saying Jesus’ prayer. Let us say 
together, ‘‘ Our Father, who art in heaven, hal- 
lowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy 
will be done.” 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Deepening the Impression. (Let the chil- 
dren add a page to their note-books, printing and 


illuminating the phrases, ‘‘ Thy kingdom come,”’ 


and “ Thy will be done.” These pages will be 
placed opposite the picture of Jesus praying.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Tell a missionary story on the order of “‘ How 
the Artist Forgot Four Colors,” showing that in 
God’s kingdom are children of many colors and 
races. This particular story is found in Mission- 
ary Stories for Little Folks, by Applegarth, printed 
also in The Second Year Mayflower Program Book, 
by Perkins and Danielson.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Material. (With the picture gallery 
before the class, let the children recall incident 
after incident where Jesus showed unusual power. 
Tell in the following conversational manner the 
story of the people’s desire to crown him, and his 
vain attempt to make them understand the 
Kingdom of Love. Bible references: John 6 : 1- 
683 27-71 15512,5 

Can’t you imagine the people becoming more 
and more enthusiastic and thinking, ‘“‘ What a 
king he would make! How fine to have a ruler 
who would not only be fair and kind and sympa- 
thetic, with love for the common people, but who 
could do wonders for them! Why, he could 
probably cause a great kingdom to rise up, with 
vast armies at his command, and all the people 
now following him would be protected forever 
from the cruel Roman rule and live in peace and 
prosperity always. Oh, it would be a great thing 
to crown this wonderful man!’ With shouts 
and waving of arms they pressed in upon him, 
demanding that he be their king. They knew he 
could be if he would. 

Wasn’t it strange how slow people were to 
understand what kind of a kingdom Jesus wanted? 

When he told them he couldn’t be the sort of 
king they wanted, and made them finally under- 
stand the kind of kingdom he was working for, a 
great change came over the crowd. Most of 
them wanted easy lives. They didn’t want to 
have to work themselves for such a kingdom. 
They lost their interest in Jesus. They knew he 


132 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


was good, but they didn’t want to be reminded 
of it. His unselfishness made them ashamed. 


And so, by ones, and twos, and fives, and tens, 
and dozens, people began to drop away from him. 
The crowds grew smaller and smaller, until only 
the twelve whom Jesus had specially chosen 
remained with him. 

Let us compare the two kingdoms — the kind 
that the people wanted and the kind Jesus was 
working for. Which was bound to last longer? 
Which would do the most good? Would a king 
on a throne back in Palestine, two thousand years 
ago, no matter how strong his armies were, no 
matter how powerful he might be, or how much 
good he did, keep on influencing people hundreds 
and thousands of years after he died? 

Jesus never asked in all his prayers to his 
Father, “Father, let my kingdom come.” He 
prayed, “ Let thy kingdom come,” and taught his 
disciples to pray for it and work for it. 

If those disciples hadn’t stuck to him and 
worked for his kingdom, can you think what 
would have been the difference to us? 


ANNE: We wouldn’t be trying to be like 
Jesus. 

Extnor: Maybe we wouldn’t ever have 
heard of him. 


133 


The reason people deserted Jesus was because 
they saw that in the kind of kingdom he wanted 
they would really have to work to help it along 
themselves. They would have to give up their 
bad habits and be helpful to each other. Would 
you like to live in the kind of kingdom Jesus was 
working for? 


School A. Cup: Yes. 

Leaver: Do you really want it to come 
about? 

Cuiip: Yes. 

LeEapER: Enough to work for it? 

CHILDREN: Yes. No. 


What would it mean for us? 


School A. CHitprEN: We'd have to help 
our mothers. Not fight. Notlie. Be kind 
toanimals. Notsteal. Mind our mothers 
promptly. Not swear. Use our self- 
control. 


Do you still want that enough to work for it? 
Then will you say with me, to God, what Jesus 
used to pray to his Father? Only if you don’t 
mean it, don’t pray it, for it isn’t honest to tell 
God you want a thing and then not care enough 
to try to do your part. ‘‘ Our Father who art in 
heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom 
come.” 


TWENTY-THIRD WEEKDAY 
Spring Hike 


Plan a hike to look for signs of spring, counting 
each child ten for every discovery, on the order 
of “ Roadside Cribbage.” 

If an outdoor hike is not practical, alternate 
with an “indoor hike.’’ For this the leader hides 
in every possible place pictures of birds, flowers, 
lichens, cocoons, and other objects which might 
be found on a March walk, and credits the finder 
with certain counts, as if out-of-doors. Light 
refreshments may also be concealed. Spring- 
time songs may be practised, nature verses chosen 
for the following Sunday’s worship service, and 
outdoor games played. 


Report of School A 


Preparing for a Hike and Its Problems 

Planned for our hike which is to occur next 
week. Showed picture of Jesus praying. 

Leaver: Why do you suppose Jesus prayed 
outdoors in a desert place? Why not indoors? 

Cuitp: He didn’t feel as close to God indoors. 

Leaver: Why do you think so? 

ANNE: God made the rocks. 

Leaver: Perhaps that was the way he felt. 
God did make the out-of-doors and it does seem 
nearer him somehow. His work is everywhere 
and we'll be noticing it from now on. Already 
there are signs of spring. It would be fun to 
count the signs on our next hike. 

CuiLpren: Yes. Let’s! 

Stuart: I thought you said we couldn’t have 
any more hikes. 

Leaver: I said we never could have another, 
if things happened that happened on the last one. 

Lawrence: What happened? 

JOHN AND FLorrie (eagerly): Stuart — 

LEabeER (referring to a class reminder): ‘‘ Who- 
ever wasn’t to blame himself — ” 

Fiorrte: “ Throw the first stone.” (acting on 
the hint) Tina found a cocoon. 

Leaver: Do you think we’ve learned to use 
our self-control enough yet to go on another hike? 


CHILDREN: Yes. 

(John had gotten up and was fooling with the 
Christian flag.) 

Leaver: Will you remember whose banner we 
are under and try to do things he wouldn’t be 
ashamed of? 

Lawrence: It would be a good thing if we 
could take it with us. 

FLorrie: I’m going to make me a paper one 
to wear. 

(See how these suggestions were acted upon in 
Twenty-Fourth Sunday and Weekday.) 

LEADER (after the session): Stuart, I’ve been 
thinking and thinking about you ever since our 
last hike, when you spoiled everything, and I’ve 
been wondering if you wouldn’t like to do some- 
thing special for the next one to make up partly 
for it. 

Stuart: Yes, I would, Miss Bradley. 

Leaver: You said you could take us where 
there are some pussy-willows. I thought you 
wouldn’t mind telling your mother how you 
spoiled the last hike by losing your self-control. 

Stuart: I did tell her. 

Leaver: You did? I’m glad. Then I’m sure 
she’d help you to do something special to show 
the class you’re sorry. Do you think she’d make 
some cookies for the hike? You could go to the 
pussy-willow place first and hide them and let 
the others discover them. 

Stuart (delighted): I know she’d do it, Miss 
Bradley. I'll hide them good! 

Leaver: You could bury them. It would be 
a hidden treasure. 

Stuart: I'll get up early and put them in a 
box and bury them, way down. They’ll have to 
dig some! 

Leaver: You’d better have a stone or some- 
thing near by to mark the place. Good-bye — 
don’t tell. 

(For Stuart’s display of temper see Fourteenth 
Weekday.) 


134 


TWENTY-FOURTH SUNDAY 
March 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Use the service prepared by the weekday 
group. Before the prayer remind the children 
that the only reason for asking for anything is 
that we want it; that if we truly want it we shall 
be willing to work for it; that it isn’t being honest 
with God to say we want to be better and not 
intend to try to be better. If this prayer is re- 
peated clause by clause, it would be better for 
one who does not mean it all to repeat only the 
parts that he does mean. To the prayer as 
originally suggested may be added, “ We ask 
these things, Father, because we want thy will 
to be done, and to help to make thy kingdom 
come, for Jesus’ sake, Amen.’’) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


A Backward and Forward Look. (Recall 
“The Happiest Kingdom.” Review what each 
of the four stood for, making it so clear that every 
child in the group understands that the first three 
were the kind over which Jesus said he could not 
be king, but that the fourth, the Kingdom of 
Love, was what he had come to build on earth. 


LEADER (listing the kingdoms on_ the 
board): And what was the fourth? 

CuitpREN: Kingdom of Love. Kingdom 
of Happiness. Kingdom of God. King- 
dom of Jesus. 


(Add to the gallery pictures of future stories, 
to arouse the children’s interest and curiosity. 

(Say that from now on for several Sundays, 
the stories will show how Jesus kept working for 
this kingdom, in spite of the wicked men who 
hindered him. The children will see how these 
men finally killed Jesus, but that, of course, they 
couldn’t kill his spirit; so that Jesus really kept 
right on living, and helping along, through his 
friends, the kingdom that he started on earth.) 


JOHN (on mention of Jesus’ death): Then 
I’m not coming that day! 

Tommy: Did the spirits of the disciples 
keep on living too? 

LEADER: Yes. 


AnnE: I know. First he worked through 
them, and they told people, and when they 
died, those people told others — down to 
us. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


A Spartan Legend. 
THe City WALL 

Lysander, the king’s messenger, hurried 
through the streets and out toward the city 
gates. His errand was to take him to a 
distant country, and he must hasten. When 
the guard in the watch tower of the wall 
recognized him, he quickly gave orders to let him 
pass through, and the soldiers had barely time to 
call a farewell as he rushed by them. 

As Lysander heard the gates shut behind him, 
and thought of the thick, high wall which en- 
closed his city, he thought of that other city 
toward which he was traveling. Neither he nor 
his king, nor any one in the kingdom had ever 
visited it, but strange rumors had reached them 
which had made them curious. It was said that 
there was no city anywhere so strong, so beauti- 
ful, so happy and so safe. The people in it 
feared nothing. Lysander remembered the king’s 
last words to him: “ And Lysander, look care- 
fully about you when you reach the city. Note 
the height and thickness of the wall. A city so 
rich and beautiful must have the strongest fortifi- 
cations, or it would be in constant danger of being 
destroyed. Yet the people have no fear. Find 
out if you can the secret of their happiness and 
safety.” 

Lysander was eager to do his king’s bidding. 
He was curious himself. How could a city be so 
well protected that every one in it felt safe and 
happy? His own city was in constant danger 
from neighboring armies. That was the reason 
for the wall. And yet inside the wall people 
could not trust each other. Every one was 
afraid: of each other, of outside armies. No one 
was happy, because no one felt safe, so the king 
kept building the wall higher, and placed guards 
everywhere to spy on his own people. 

More and more Lysander wanted to see tbe 
strange city, but began to wonder if he would he 


135 


136 


allowed to enter. Would the guards on the wall 
give a warning that a stranger was coming, and 
fearing a spy, would soldiers come out and attack 
him? He wondered particularly about the wall. 
It was probably very high, and of something 
stronger, no doubt, than brick. 

For days Lysander traveled until at last he 
saw in the distance lofty buildings gleaming in 
the sun. But where was the high, thick wall he 
had expected to see? Where were the watch 
towers and guards to give warning that a stranger 
was approaching? Instead of these there were 
shady roads leading into the city and inviting the 
stranger to enter. One of these took the surprised 
Lysander straight to the castle, where he delivered 
his message without delay. 

Before he left he said to the ruler, ‘‘ The fame 
of your rich and beautiful city has spread far. 
But do you not think it unsafe, without a city 
wall? ” 

“IT should, indeed,”’ answered the ruler, ‘‘ if 
there were none. But we have the safest kind! 
Come with me and I will show you our city wall.” 

He led Lysander out of the castle and into the 
streets of the city. They passed buildings and 
monuments which were pure white, for no one 
had soiled or hurt them in any way. The streets 
were clean and safe, and it was easy to see why. 
Children and grown people alike seemed to be 
following certain rules. Nobody got in another’s 
way, the older children looked out for the younger, 
every one helped every one else. They took 
care that nothing was dropped to make the streets 
untidy. In the parks children were taking pains, 
as they played on the grass, not to trample on the 
flower-beds. They were all playing fair, and when 
one little boy was hurt, his playmates ran quickly 
to comfort him and help him to his feet. 

The king pointed to one group after another. 
“You see,” he said, ‘‘ how all these people go 
faithfully about their business without quarrel- 
ing; helping each other, obeying the laws, keep- 
ing the streets safe and clean, playing fair, telling 
the truth. Why should they be afraid? There is 
nothing to fear when every one can be trusted. 
A city is nothing but people. What makes a city 
safe is the right sort of people. They are my 
city wall,” he finished, ‘‘ and every one is a brick.” 

So Lysander hurried home to tell his king the 
secret. And in time that city too became happy 
and safe. The people were no longer afraid, for 
they could trust one another. Laws were now 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


obeyed without soldiers, and though the old wall 
fell into decay, the city was safer than ever, for 
the people themselves were the wall, and every 
one was a brick. 

Prayer by Leader. Our Father who art in 
heaven, help us be bricks in the wall of the king- 
dom. Amen. 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Material. (Something more than service 
is needed in God’s kingdom. Honesty and fair 
dealing are required. Tell the story of Zac- 
cheus, a man who belonged to the “ Richest 
Kingdom ”’ before he met Jesus and learned about 
the “ Kingdom of Love.” Bible reference, Luke 
19 : J-8.) 

Story. 


A Man Wuo WantTED TO SEE JESUS 


Come with me along the city street. I want 
to introduce you to some one who lives here in 
Jericho. It is still early and he is probably on 
his way to business. But did you ever see such 
crowds of people? Always at this time of the 
year the city is crowded. Thousands of people 
are passing through on their way up to Jerusalem 
to celebrate the feast of the Passover. 

We shall never be able to find one man in all 
this crowd. For one reason he is very short, and 
it would be easy to look right over his head. 
Some people say he is so short partly because the 
bags that he carries are so heavy with money that 
they pull him down. Oh, yes, he has a great deal 
of money! He’s as rich as can be. But nobody 
likes him. Nobody “nice ’’ has anything to do 
with him. 

The reason is that he’s a tax-collector. No 
Jew in all Palestine likes tax-collectors. In the 
first place, they work for the Romans. Instead of 
the taxes that they collect being used for building 
good roads and schools and parks here in Pales- 
tine, the money is sent away off to Rome to make 
cruel, selfish Roman noblemen even richer than 
they are. But besides working for those selfish 
Romans, these tax-collectors generally collect 
more than they need to, and keep the extra for 
themselves. They don’t tell the Roman emperor 
the truth about how much money they have 
collected. They don’t tell the people who have 
to pay the truth about how much they must 
collect. They collect twice and three times as 
much as they need sometimes, and keep all the 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


extra for themselves. That’s a pretty poor busi- 
ness for a man to be in, isn’t it? No wonder nice 
people won’t have anything to do with men in 
such a business. Now this Zaccheus that we’re 
going to see is one of the richest men in town. 
But does he ever help anybody with his money? 
No, indeed, he does not! Instead he robs poor 
people of money that they need, to make him all 
the richer. Henever givesaway anything. He 
just collects — steals what doesn’t belong to him, 
and lies about what he is doing. 

We are nearly at the customs house now. 
That’s where his place of business is. But what 
acrowd! Many of the people look as if they had 
been traveling several days. Those people just 
passing: us are from Galilee. I heard them say 
something about Capernaum. They must have 
been at least two days on the way. 

Here we are at the edge of the city. There — 
there’s Zaccheus! See that little huddled-up 
man sitting in the door of the customs house? 
Even in his chair he looks short. There are his 
full money bags, and see how keenly he looks at 
each person who brings anything into the city, 
sizing them all up, and demanding money whether 
it’s fair or not. You can tell by their faces how 
they dislike him. Some even try to argue with 
him, but it’s no use. He works for the emperor, 
and if he chose to report you, it would be the 
worse for you. 

But look! he’s paying no attention to his busi- 
ness; he seems to be listening to that group of 
people over there. They’re telling about Jesus of 
Nazareth. That man is telling how Jesus cured 
his son. Another is saying that he has heard 
Jesus talk, that he is a wonderful Teacher, and 
would make a wonderful king. Now they’re 
talking about his disciples, and Zaccheeus is lean- 
ing away over to hear. They are saying that one 
of the disciples is Matthew, who was a tax- 
gatherer. Zaccheus looks puzzled. He has 
heard about this Jesus of Nazareth before, but 
he never has seen him. And he did not know that 
Jesus, or any one of importance, would be a 
friend of a tax-gatherer. He is very curious. 

The talk about Jesus goes on. Some say that 
he is on his way to Jerusalem now to be crowned 
king. People tried to make him king before but 
he refused, and many of his followers left him. 
But he still seems to have a great many. 

More people are entering the city all the time, 
but Zaccheeus has forgotten to think whether he 


137 


may demand taxes from them. He is listening 
to what they are saying, for they, too, are talking 
about Jesus of Nazareth. They are looking back, 
waiting for the company to catch up. Some one 
says, ‘‘ Here they come — Jesus and his disciples!”’ 
Zaccheeus leaves his bench now and tries to see. 
The crowd is too great. Always some one gets in 
front of him and he is so short he can see nothing. 

But Zaccheus wants to see Jesus, this man 
whom people are talking about for a king, and 
who is a friend to tax-collectors. He makes up 
his mind to do it. Watch him stretch and stand 
on tiptoe as the group with Jesus in it approaches. 
Still he can’t see Jesus. There are too many 
people around him. But Zaccheus doesn’t give 
up. Look! he’s running on ahead. He has a 
scheme — let’s follow him. Oh, he’s climbing a 
tree! See him scrambling out upon that limb. 
No one shall be in his way now. 

But listen to the jeers of the people. They’ve 
seen what he did. They know how short he is 
and they are making fun of him. They wouldn’t 
jeer so if they liked him, but they hate him on 
account’ of his business. 

See Zacchzeus in the tree, looking with all his 
eyes, and his heart too, I think, at the man at the 
head of the procession approaching. He seems 
not to hear the crowd hooting at him and calling 
him names. He has heard their taunts before. 
He knows well enough what they think of him. 
He is busy now looking at Jesus. 

But Jesus hears the calling and sees the point- 
ing of fingers. He is always looking about, any- 
way, to see if he can help some one. As soon as he 
looks in Zaccheeus’ face he knows that here is 
another to help. He knows exactly what Zac- 
cheus needs. He sees that Zaccheeus is already 
ashamed of the business he is in, and wants to 
change. 

‘* Zaccheeus!’’ Jesus says, to the little man’s 
amazement, “‘come down quickly, for I must 
stay at your house today!” 

The crowd is surprised, too. Some are com- 
plaining. No respectable person ever stayed with 
a tax-collector! 

But Zaccheus is already down, and already 
looks different. He is joyously welcoming Jesus. 
He looks as if he could hardly wait to tell him that 
he is ashamed of what he has done. Jesus doesn’t 
need to explain to Zaccheeus that to be his friend 
and help in his kingdom he must change his ways 
and deal honestly and fairly with all people. 


138 


Zaccheus has already read it in Jesus’ face. 
Listen to him. 

*“* See, Master,” he is saying, “I will give half 
my property to the poor, and if I have cheated any 
one out of anything, I will pay him four times as 
much!’’ Think of that for Zaccheus, who for 
years has thought only of getting rich, no matter 
how he did it! 

Let’s go away and leave Zaccheus now, and 
think how wonderful Jesus is that he can make us 
want to choose his kingdom enough to change our 
ways and make up for the wrong things we have 
done! 


ANNE: I see now why you said he be- 
longed to the Richest Kingdom first. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Report of School A 


Plans for Making Amends 

Stuart (after class): My mother said she’d 
make those cookies, Miss Bradley. How many 
do we want? 

Leader had asked Florrie to stay; reminded 
her of the suggestion that it would be nice to carry 
the Christian flag on our hike, and that she had 
said she was going to make one; asked if she’d 
thought yet of any way to make up for the day 
she lost her self-control. She had not. Leader 
suggested she could make little Christian flags 
for the whole class. Florrie delighted. She 
would come to leader’s house tomorrow after 
school. It would be a surprise so she wouldn’t 
tell anybody. 


TWENTY-FOURTH WEEKDAY 
Three Alternatives 


I. Hike 


If an “ indoor hike ”’ was enjoyed last week, the 
children will be beautifully prepared for an out- 
door one today. They will be keener to observe 
the signs of spring after hunting for the pictures 
and objects of the “ indoor hike.” 

As a further step in making friends with the 
children in another part of the world, an inter- 
change of pressed flowers is suggested. This will 
not only give the class zest in gathering spring 
flowers as they appear, and practise in naming and 
preserving them, but will furnish a really interest- 
ing gift. If this plan is adopted the class should 
get in touch with one of the distant group — 
child, teacher or missionary, — explaining the 
plan and hoping that these new friends will make 
for this class a similar collection of wild flowers 
of their section. (See Twenty-Fifth Weekday, 
‘ Another Step in the Friendship Project.”’) 

Other ways to use pressed flowers for gifts: 

(1) An attractive book of blue-print flower 
designs may be made by binding together sheets 
of blue-print paper on each of which a pressed 
flower has been placed before exposure. Ferns 
and leaves are also exquisitely silhouetted in this 
fashion. 

(2) Pressed flowers, ferns or leaves make 
beautiful designs for spatter work, greeting cards, 
blotters, or book cover decorations. For direc- 
tions see Ninth Weekday. 


II. A Program of Work or Study 


If there has been no missionary project on foot, 
and if the missionary story of last Sunday, 
together with something from the leader’s or the 
group’s experience, suggests nothing, the study 
of the set of pictures called “‘ Children from 
Many Lands ” might start an interest. This is a 
folio of ten large, beautifully colored pictures of 
children of different nationalities, with a rhyme 
under each picture showing a desirable national 
trait. They are published by the National 
Child Welfare Association, at 70 Fifth Avenue, 
New York City, $1.00 a set. 

If the children are already interested in a 
particular group through the stories and con- 
versation about other children in the “ kingdom,” 
they will want to do something really worth while 
for them. In helping the group at their work, 


there will be opportunity for lessons in such 
qualities as good workmanship, honesty, courtesy 
and perseverance. , 

As each group will have its own particular 
interest, from now on the weekday programs can 
be taken as merely suggestive. There will be 
stories designed to meet the present spiritual needs 
of the class, some general missionary stories, and 
others on the value of good workmanship, etc. 

“The Stocking Doll,’ on this page, may be 
told today. Link it up with the story of Zac- 
cheus, to keep before the children the idea of 
honesty as a requirement in Christ’s kingdom, 
and as a further incentive to put real work into 
their chosen enterprises. Directions for making 
stocking dolls and cats will be found in The 
Second Year Mayflower Program Book. 


Il. 


Seasonal songs may be chosen, practised and 
listed. Spring verses like the following, printed 
on cards which the children may handle and easily 
read, may be looked over with a view to selecting 
those most appropriate: Gen. 1 : 20; Ps. 50: lla; 
84:3; 104:12; 147:7, 8, 18; Isa. 44:14; 
61:11; Song of Sol. 2 : 11-13; Joel 2 : 23; Matt. 
6: 265; Luke 8°:'5. 

From this material the children may make one 
or more services, choosing which new verses and 
songs they will learn, and from titles which the 
leader may give them, which story or stories they 
would like her to tell in the program. 

A series of spring services planned by small 
committees of children meeting at different times 
is suggested in preference to one program planned 
at one time by all. The parts of the service will 
more easily be grasped, and programs of real 
worship will be made up more readily where there 
are fewer children to make choices and the dis- 
tractions of a large group are lacking. 


Planning a Spring Worship Service 


A Happy Valley Story 


THE Srockine DoLu 
** Oh, look,’’ the children in Miss True’s school 
cried, as Billy came in the door, “ see what Billy 
has brought! ” 
Everybody crowded around Billy to examine 
what he was carrying. 


139 


140 


** Made it all myself!’ boasted Billy proudly. 

“Did you really?” the others asked, unbeliev- 
ing. “My, but you’re smart! Say, won’t they 
like it, though! ” 

‘Why, Billy,” Miss True was saying, “ this is 
perfectly fine! See children, it’s made out of a 
stocking, and all the nicer because you made it 
yourself.” 

Billy was very proud, first because of the black 
cat which he had made by cutting up a stocking 
and stuffing it, and next because of Miss True’s 
words of praise. 

You see the children were meeting on Saturdays 
to make toys for the wise man to carry to some of 
the children about whom he had been telling 
stories, and who seemed like friends to the Happy 
Valley children. But nobody yet had ever made 
anything as clever as this black cat out of a 
stocking. They all wanted to know how at once. 

““ My mother can make dolls too, out of stock- 
ings,” Billy bragged, “but I can’t. The wise 
man said his friends would rather have something 
we made ourselves.”’ 

‘““ They would,’”’ Miss True answered him, “‘and 
Billy, I can hardly wait to show him this.” 

The children looked enviously at Billy. Alice 
envied him more than all the rest. She was 
always hoping that Miss True might say to her 
some day, “ You’re going to school, aren’t you? ”’ 
as she did to some of the others when they’d been 
trying particularly hard. The trouble was Alice 
didn’t try quite as hard as the rest. 

But now she said to herself, “‘ I’m going to make 
something all myself, and it will be so nice that 
Miss True will say, ‘Why, that’s wonderful, 
Alice! How did you ever know how to do it? I 
can hardly wait to show it to the wise man.’ ’”’ 
The thought made Alice quite happy. In fact, 
she was so full of it that nothing which the children 
were doing that day seemed worth much. She 
passed from one table to another, thinking, 
“'That’s baby work. Anybody can do that. 
Wait till they see what I’m going to make!” 
But she worked on nothing herself, and soon 
called out, “ I guess I'll go home now, Miss True. 
Good-bye.” 

“Oh, I am sorry!” answered Miss True. 
“Do you have to go? You haven’t done any 
work at all, have you?” 

“No, but I’ve got to go,” Alice responded. 
Wouldn’t Miss True be surprised when she saw 
the wonderful thing she would bring on Monday! 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


She skipped all the way home and went straight 
to her own little play-room. What should she 
make? It must be something very hard, some- 
thing the others had not thought of doing, some- 
thing quite as wonderful as Billy’s cat. 

But when she went to bed Saturday night she 
still had no idea what it was that she should make 
before Monday morning. As she drifted off to 
sleep, however, she was thinking of Miss True’s 
pleased looks. 

The next morning she was so busy pretending 
it was Monday that she forgot to pay attention 
to anything that happened in Sunday school. 

Sunday afternoon came and still Alice had not 
decided what wonderful gift to make. It was 
plain that she must make up her mind quickly, 
and get to work. Billy had made a cat out of a 
stocking. He had said you could make dolls, 
too, from stockings. Alice knew it could be done, 
for her aunt had bought her one at the Woman’s 
Exchange. It was made from a pair of socks, 
they had said. She went to the big chest in 
which she kept her dolls, and pulled it forth. 
“Tommy,” she called it, for it looked like a 
little boy dressed in cap and sweater. Both his 
socks and sweater had a blue stripe running 
around and the cap could come off. It must be 
hard to make a doll like that. Billy had said 
that even he couldn’t make dolls. Then a doll 
was the thing for Alice. She would make one 
like Tommy. Already in her mind she saw her- 
self giving it to Miss True. 

She found a pair of socks in her drawer nearly 
like those Tommy was made of, and sat down with 
some scissors. What did you do first? Make the 
cap? That was easy. You cut off the toe of a 
sock and let the edges just naturally roll up. 
But that was as far as Alice could go. She had 
no idea what to do next. She held Tommy this 
way and that. How had they made the legs? 
Or the arms? What had they used for stuffing? 
As she grew more and more puzzled she became 
more and more worried. There wasn’t much 
time before Monday, and she didn’t even know 
how to begin. A lump came in her throat. 
She did want to please Miss True. She looked at 
Tommy again. She knew now that she would 
never be able to make a doll like that by herself. 
Suddenly a tiny thought came into her head. 
Why not use Tommy? But of course she hadn’t 
made Tommy, so she put the thought out of her 
head. To take Tommy to school and let Miss 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


True think she had made him would not be hon- 
est. And yet — wouldn’t Miss True be surprised 
and pleased if she did think Alice had done that 
all herself! The thought kept coming back and 
growing bigger as it came. 

Monday morning Alice went to schoolearly. A 
few children were already there but Alice did not 
notice them. She had Tommy in her hand. 

Going straight to Miss True she said, “I 
brought something for the wise man’s friends.” 

Miss True looked up quickly and smiled. 

“Why, this is lovely, Alice,” she exclaimed, 
taking Tommy. “It will make some child very 
happy. It was nice of you to give one of your 
own toys.” 

““T made it,”’ she said. 

“You made it? ” echoed Miss True doubtfully. 

“Yes,”’ answered Alice, “out of a pair of 
socks.” 

“You mean that your mother made it, don’t 
you? ” asked Miss True. 

“No, my mother never touched it,” said Alice 
truthfully enough. 

“Then somebody helped you?” persisted 
Miss True. 

“ Nobody helped me. I made it myself.” 

Miss True looked at Tommy. He was beauti- 
fully, carefully made. His face had been painted 
on by one who knew all about painting dolls’ 
faces. Alice had never, since she had been in 
Miss 'True’s school, done careful work. It was 
one of the things that worried Miss True. She 
looked at Alice again and started to speak, but 
instead let her eyes rest on something beyond 
Alice. It was the picture of the great Teacher 
hanging on the wall, but Alice did not see. 

“ Alice,” said Miss True at last, ‘ would you 
show the rest of us how to make these dolls? 
I’m sure all the children would like to know how. 
You may show me first if you like, this after- 
noon after school.” 


School B. Witp Exctamations: Oh 


— What’s she going to do now? 


“Yes, Miss True,” promised Alice, but wonder- 
ing what she should do when the time came. 

Miss True walked over to the corner where 
their pictures hung. She looked at the picture of 
Jesus a long, long time. Alice couldn’t help 
noticing her and following her eyes to their favor- 
ite picture. It made her very uncomfortable. 
She, like the others, had said she wanted to go to 


141 


schoo] to the great Teacher, and she knew that 
he loved the truth. 


After the others had left that afternoon Miss 
True opened a bundle. “I got everything to- 
gether this noon,” she explained, as she spread 
out needles, thread, thimble and scissors, socks, 
cotton for stuffing, and last of all held up ee 

** Now what do we do first? ”’ mi 

“You make his cap first,” said Alice hesitat- 
ingly. What could she say when Miss True 
asked her about the rest? 


““ How did you happen to think of making the 
doll, Alice? ” was the next question. 


Alice thought of Billy’s cat, and how happy it 
had made Miss True. But Miss True hadn’t 
looked happy one bit about the doll. She had 
never once said, “I’m proud of you, Alice! ” 

Alice was beginning to wonder if she had taken 
the right way to please her teacher. Just saying 
you had done a thing wasn’t enough —if it 
wasn’t true — 

And now Alice knew that she had taken the 
wrong way. She had told her teacher a lie, and 
when Miss True found it out she would never, 
never like her any more. Oh, dear! The 
thought brought great tears to her eyes. 

“How did you make the legs, Alice?’ came 
Miss True’s voice. 


The tears rolled down Alice’s cheeks. 
didn’t make them,” she sobbed. ‘I w-wish I 
hadn’t said I did! I w-wanted you to I-love me.” 

Miss True’s arms were around her in a moment. 
“I’m glad you told me, Alice,” she said. ‘‘ I was 
sure that you hadn’t made the doll, and that you 
would tell me. But I do love you, my dear, for 
you have in your heart a very lovely thing.” 

Alice was so surprised that Miss True could 
find anything lovely about her that she stopped 
crying to listen. 

“Tt is a beautiful wish,” said Miss True, “a 
wish that not all children have. It is the wish 
to please one’s teacher.” She looked at the pic- 
ture of Jesus near them. ‘“‘ There couldn’t be 
any more beautiful wish in the world than to 
please this Teacher,” she went on. ‘He said 
that in his Father’s world people should love and 
trust each other. But how can people trust each 
other, if they don’t speak the truth? You see, 
Alice, you took the wrong way to please me. It 
only makes me unhappy not to be able to believe 
what you say.” 


ee oe 


142 


Alice was crying again. “Oh, you can, Miss 
True, you can!”’ she said. ‘‘ Please trust me! ” 

Anybody would feel like trusting again a little 
girl as sorry as Alice was. Miss True said, “ Of 
course I'll believe you, Alice, for you’re sorry for 
what you did. Are you sorry enough to make the 
lie come true? ”’ 

What did Miss True mean? How could she 
make the lie come true? She had said she had 
made Tommy. 

“T couldn’t make it come true,” she said sor- 
rowfully. ‘I tried to make a dolly myself but I 
didn’t know how.” 

“* But I do,” said Miss True. And she helped 
Alice to make one. Alice had never worked so 
hard and so long at a time on anything. 

The wise man came in just as she was finishing. 

“* See,” said Miss True, “* Alice has just finished 
something for you to take to one of your friends.” 

The wise man opened his eyes wide. ‘‘ Well!”’ 
he exclaimed, ‘‘ that must have taken a long time 
and a great deal of work.” 

“Tt did,” said Miss True, putting her hand on 
Alice’s head. ‘‘ Didn’t she do it beautifully? 
I’m so proud of Alice; she’s one of the children 
who is going to school!” 


Report of School A on Hike 


Stuart and Florrie Make Amends 

Tina (before starting): Miss Bradley, I put it 
in my prayer last night that I’d be good on the 
hike. 

Friorrie (distributing little paper Christian 
flags): Here, Frankie, I made the biggest one of 
all for you, because I whacked your head. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Frankie: Oh, thank you, Florrie!’ 

Sruart (as we met him near his home, aside to 
leader): Say, Miss Bradley, my mother made 
fifty-seven cookies. I couldn’t bury ‘em though, 
there were too many dogs around. (To children) 
I’m the boss of this hike. You’ve got to do as I 
say! 

(Children denuded the pussy-willow tree to 
which Stuart led them. He then allowed them 
to play on “his” pile of railroad ties while he 
went home for the cookies.) 

CHILDREN (on his return): Three cheers for 
Stuart! 

Stuart: There’s fifty-seven of ’em! 

Tina: I like to give three cheers for Stuart’s 
mother! 

Leaper: Let’s! Perhaps she'll hear us. 

Cuitp: Look! She’s coming now! 

Frorrie (as Anne handed Stuart's mother a 
pussy-willow spray): We were just talking about 
you and wishing we could thank you. 

Sruart’s Moruer (to leader): I wanted to 
make doughnuts, but Stuart insisted on cookies. 
He has been looking forward all the week to 
today. 

Stuart (on the way home, to French children 
who threw stones): Quit that! (to class) Let ’em 


alone. They won’t dare touch you with me 
here. 
(Later) That’s those children’s father. I 


could tell him about their throwing stones, but 
I’m no tattle-tale. (still later) Was I good, 
Miss Bradley? 

Tina: This is the best hike we’ve had. 


TWENTY-FIFTH SUNDAY 
March 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Follow a praise song, chosen by the children, 
with the suggestion of the host of children round 
the world singing praises at this time for the love 
and beauty in the world, for trees and flowers, 
sunshine and rain, home, food, families and 
friends. 

(Sing another praise song which might be 
universal, such as, “ Glory, glory, glory be to God 
on high,” from ‘ How the Artist Forgot Four 
Colors,” or the refrain of ‘‘ Day is Dying in the 
West.” Let the children think of the thousands 
who are praising God for sending Jesus to show us 
how to live. 

(Sing “ Gentle Child of Nazareth,” and pray, 
ending with a petition about the gifts which we 
have brought that other children may learn about 
the “ gentle child of Nazareth,” “ the little lad 
of Galilee.’’) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Deepening Impressions. (Tell how one man 
wishing like Zaccheeus, and like the class, that he 
might see Jesus, wrote a song about it for all of 
us to sing. Sing softly, or read the first, third 
and fourth stanzas.) 


‘We would see Jesus; lo! his star is shining 
Above the stable where the angels sing; 
There in a manger on the hay reclining 
Haste, let us lay our gifts before the King. 


‘* We would see Jesus, on the mountain teaching 
With all the listening people gathered round; 
While birds and flowers and sky above are 
preaching 
The blessedness which simple trust has found. 


““ We would see Jesus in his work of healing 
At eventide, before the sun was set; 
Divine and human in his deep revealing 

Of God and man in loving service met. 


“We would see Jesus in the early morning; 
Still as of old he calleth, ‘Follow me.’ 
Let us arise, all meaner service scorning. 
Lord, we are thine, we give ourselves to 
thee! ” 


(Ask what Zaccheus had to give up in order 
to “follow Jesus,” or be a member of his king- 
dom? What makes a “brick” in the wall of 
that kingdom?) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(Following out the idea suggested in the first 
departmental period, continue the thought, with 
the help of missionary pictures of children round 
the world singing praises to their heavenly 
Father. If desired, the children may form 
different groups, representing chosen races, and 
in a circle sing, “ Glory, glory, glory be to God 
on high.” Or the entire period may be devoted 
to an appreciation of the song, “ God’s Children 
Live in Many Lands,” from Song and Play for 
Children, by Danielson and Conant. While the 
song is being sung the children will think of that 
part of God’s family for whom they are working.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Material. (Say you are to read a story 
about a man who had never had much chance to 
work for God’s kingdom. He, like Zaccheus, 
wanted to see Jesus, but even if Jesus passed by, 
he could not have seen him, for he was blind. 
Read about the healing of Bartimeus [Mark 
10 : 46-52] or the account of the blind man of 
Bethsaida [Mark 8 : 22-26], retold in When the 
King Came by Dean Hodges, beginning page 213. 
Try to make the children feel the joy of this man 
when his eyes were opened.) 

What did he see first? What do they think he 
was gladdest to see? What do they think made 
him the happiest when he found he was no longer 
blind? 

Report of School A 
Checking up on the Hike 


FRANKIE (before Stuart arrived): Didn’t we have 
a good time though — m — those cookies! 

LEADER: Stuart was sorry he spoiled the last 
hike for us, and he certainly made it up to us 
yesterday, didn’t he? 

Cuorus: I'll say he did! 

LEADER: Some of us prayed the night before 


143 


144 


that it would be a good hike, and that we’d be 
good. Was our prayer answered? 

CHILDREN: Yes! 

Leaver (looking at Jesus’ picture): Do you 
think we really acted yesterday as though we 
were carrying his banner? 

CHILDREN: Yes. 

Leaver: Do you think our Teacher would have 
been pleased? 

CHILDREN: Yes. 

Leaver: I was so proud of you. I wanted to 
say to every one of you, ‘‘ You are going to school.” 


Plan for Worship Services 

LreapER: Yesterday some of the girls sang a 
song about pussy-willows, and I’ve asked them 
to sing it to the department. It made me wonder 
if this class couldn’t make up the worship services 
for a month — choose stories and songs and verses, 
as we did before? 

Joun: I’ll choose the stories. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Anne: We might even make up some songs. 

Boys agreed to meet during the week. (See 
Twenty-Sixth Sunday.) 
Revealing Remarks 

Leaver: Let’s think of things we could do 
differently which would make our mothers happy, 
and write them on these slips. (As John remained 
apathetic) Can’t you think of anything your 
mother wishes you wouldn’t do or would do, 
John? 

Joun: SureI can. I could fill three pages, but 
I’m not going to let anybody know how bad I am. 


LEADER (to inattentive children): I thought you 
liked me to read stories instead of telling them. 

CHILDREN: I don’t. Neither doI. Tell them 
after this. 


Joun: How long’s this class going to last? 
Leaver: Until the middle of June. Why? 
Joun: Oh, I wish it would last forever! 


TWENTY-FIFTH WEEKDAY 


Work, Instruction, Stories 


(Furthering the missionary enterprise undertaken by the class) 


Report of School A 
Profiting by Former Blunder 
John and Lawrence were allowed to work on 
their books during the story. The beautiful page 
that John exhibited at the end showed that it was 
possible to work and listen too. (See Twenty- 
Second Weekday, “‘ Blunders of Leader.’’) 


Another Step in the Friendship Project 

Pictures and a letter containing stories and 
description had come from Virginia. Children 
crowded to see and hear. 

LEADER: We have a pretty good idea of how it 
looks down there, haven’t we? How could we 
make them see our town as clearly? 

OnE: We could send pictures. 

ANOTHER: Could we make a map? 

While half the class started for the toy-making, 
the other half engaged itself in trying to chart 
out the town on the sand-table. The attempt 
was a failure, the children being unable to visu- 
alize the village as a whole. Each child made 
his own house so large that the town could con- 
tain nothing else. (See in the next Sunday 
program how this inspired the cooperation of the 
Junior Club, interesting them in the project.) 

Curtp: We ought to show on the map where 
we went for pussy-willows. 

Anne: We might send them some pussy-willows. 

LAwrRENcE: And when the flowers are out we 
could send them Mayflowers. 

Thus the idea suggested to leaders in Twenty- 
Fourth Weekday of the children sharing the 
flora of their section with friends in another came 
quite naturally from the children themselves. 


Florrie Goes into Quarantine 

Commotion in the hall. Slap! Slap! Sobbing 
of visiting child. Storms of abuse from John, 
rescuing child from Florrie. 
Joun: Miss Bradley, I heard that slap way in 
the kitchen. It was an awful one, 
Fiore: I did not slap her. 
touched her like that. 

Joun: But I sat right there facing her and I 
could hear it too. 

Leaver: Never mind, John. Florrie, ‘“‘ touch- 
ing ’’ a person doesn’t hurt her enough to make 
her cry like this. 


I just merely 


FiorriE: Well, she’s a big cry baby. I didn’t 
slap her at all. Did I, Ada? 

Apa: Y-y-y-y-you d-d-d-did! 

Fiorriz: I did not. I just touched her like 
that. 

Joun: Aw — Miss Bradley! 

LEADER: Go back to your work, John. Flor- 
rie, I don’t know what you did, for I didn’t see it, 
but something you have done was enough to hurt 
our guest. We’ve talked about this before. A 
person who is dangerous to a group can’t stay in 
the group. She’s as dangerous as if she had a 
disease which would hurt the others. I’m sorry, 
but you'll have to go into quarantine for a week. 

Fiorrie: I never slapped her, I just barely 
touched her like that. 

LeapEeR: Whatever you did, it was enough to 
make her cry real tears. Get on your coat and go 
quickly and remember about the quarantine. 

Fiorrie: If I go home now, I'll never come 
back to this class again! (flounced into next room to 
continue work). 

LEADER (following her): Florrie, I asked you 


to go now. 
Frorrie: Well, I'll make you unhappy all 
right. You’ll never see me here again! 


Leaper: I’m unhappy already. 

Florrie left. Leader went into kitchen and 
told the children what had happened; made them 
stop working to listen. 

Leaver: It doesn’t seem as if we were learning 
a thing in this class when we can’t control our- 
selves any better than this. 

Joun: Well, I’ve learned all right. 
do those things here any more! 

(See how Florrie’s act was followed up in 
succeeding programs.) 


I don’t 


Report of School B 


Child’s Note Suggesting Next Program 
Dear Mrs. Long, I am sending you these lan- 
terns because I thought this Thursday we could 
make them in weekday school. And I thought 
you could tell the story of Alladin and his wonder- 
ful lamp and if you don’t know it, I will bring the 
book of it. Please call me up and tell me so. 
With love from Betty. 


145 


TWENTY-SIXTH SUNDAY 
March — April 
(For Easter observances see April programs) 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
What School A Did 
Opening Service of Worship 
(Twenty-five minutes) 
Quieting Music. 
Bible Verse. “For truly the light is sweet, 
and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold 
the sun.” By Tommy. 


Refrain. “Glory, glory, glory be to God on 
high.” 

Bible Verse. “ He casteth forth his ice like 
morsels.”’ 


** He sendeth out his word, and melteth them; 

He causeth his wind to blow, and the waters 
to flow,” By Stuart. 
Refrain. “Glory, glory, glory be to God on 
high.” 

Bible Verse. “For, lo, the winter is past; 

The rain is over and gone; The flowers appear 

on the earth; The time of the singing of birds 

is come,” By Frankie. 


Refrain. “Glory, glory, glory be to God on 
high.” 
Song. “ For, lo, the Winter is Past.” 


Poem. “ An Open Secret.” 

Song. “The Alder by the River.” 

Prayer. Composed by children, led by leader, 
with song refrain. 

Song Refrain. “We love thee, heavenly 
Father.” (Original.) 

Song. ‘ Around the throne.” 


Conversation about Missionary Pictures. 
Offering Service. 


Song. ‘“ God’s Children Live in Many 
Lands.” 
Story. ‘‘ The Boy Who Discovered Spring.” 


(From Why the Chimes Rang, Alden.) 


Song. “ For, lo, the Winter is Past.” 
Chords and March to Classes. (For re- 
mainder of hour.) 
CLASS PERIOD 
Application of Jesus’ Teachings. Did you 


ever go away from home without your mother? 
How do you know what to do if your mother 
isn’t there? 


CHILDREN: She told us before we went. 
You remember what she said. 


How do you know how to do your lessons at 
home when your teacher isn’t there? 


CHILDREN: We remember how she told 
us to do it. 


We've been saying we were going to school to 
the great Teacher. Do you suppose we've 
learned enough about him to know what he wants 
us to do? Could he really be our Teacher at 
home, or in church, or when we're playing? 

I’ve thought of a new game. I'll ask you 
questions right around the circle, and they will 
be about how we should feel and act toward others. 
When your turn comes you're to go to the screen 
and find the picture that tells you the answer as 
Jesus taught it. Some will be pictures of what 
he did, some of stories he told. 

Do you think it’s all right to tell on other 
people who’ve done wrong? (Picture of Pharisees 
wishing to stone woman.) 

There are so many people who call themselves 
great — how am I to tell the really great from 
those who are not? (Jesus washing disciples’ 
feet.) 

Is there any particular place where children 
can learn more about God? (Christ among the 
doctors.) 

How can I know what God wants me to do? 
How was Jesus always sure? (Jesus praying.) 

Is there anything finer, when some one has done 
something mean to you, than to pay him back? 
(David sparing Saul’s life.) 


School A. Leader stopped to retell this 
story at unanimous request. 


Are great people gentle with children? (Jesus 
with children.) 

Are great people kind to animals? (Good 

Shepherd.) 

Who is a real neighbor, the one who is nice only 
to his friends and people he knows? (Good 
Samaritan. ) . 

How do we know God wants people to be well 
and happy and have enough toeat? (Feeding the 
five thousand.) 


146 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Does God like to be thanked? (Healing the 
leper.) 
How can you stop a quarrel? 


Lot.) 


(Abraham and 


School A. Visitor reported afterward 
to leader that Tina, the only child who 
failed, had said to her, ‘I couldn’t say 
that picture, because Frankie told me.” 


Report of School A 


Sharing the Interest in Virginia with Pri- 
mary and Junior Departments 

Pictures of Virginia children were mounted on 
three large charts, with descriptions printed under 
each picture. These were hung in the Primary 
room today and were the center of attraction 
throughout the spring for all early comers. 

ANNE (offering her sister’s services): Elsie says 
she'll make a map for us. She had to make one 
last year in fifth grade. 

SEVERAL JuNIoR Girxs (after hearing in the 
Junior Club of Elsie’s offer, and studying the 
charts): May we make some scrap-books, Miss 
Bradley, for you to take to the Virginia children? 


Florrie Again 

Joun (before the session): Oh, look, Miss 
Bradley! There’s Florrie, and she’s in quaran- 
tine! 

LrapER: We couldn’t ask her to stay away 


147 


from Sunday school, could we? She’s quaran- 
tined only from the things the class does together. 

Fiorrié (after class): Are we going on a hike 
this Saturday, Miss Bradley? 

LeApER: You're not going anywhere; 
know you’re in quarantine. 

Fiorrie (a moment later): What are we going 
to do this Saturday, Miss Bradley, if we don’t 
go on a hike? 

LEADER: We'll work on our toys and John is 
going to bring his jumping sticks again. But 
you are not coming this week, Florrie. You 
know you are in quarantine. 

Frorrie: Well, I’m not coming to this class 
any more, anyway. 

LeapER: We hope that the Florrie who was 
here yesterday won’t come back. We want the 
real Florrie, though. And we can tell when you 
are ready to come out of quarantine. (Suddenly 
remembering the question planned for Florrie.) 
Oh, come back, children, here’s another question 
I forgot. How can God be sure that people are 
sorry when they’ve done wrong? 

Fioreie (looking at Zaccheus’ picture): I 
think I know. 

LEADER: How? 

Frorrie: If they promise not to be like that 
any more. 

Leaver: Anything else? 

Fioreie (after a pause): If they try to pay 
back the people they’ve been mean to. 


you 


TWENTY-SIXTH WEEKDAY 
Work on the Missionary Enterprise 


If it has not already been provided, the class 
should have some sort of system by which the 
members take turns in cleaning up after they 
have worked. Different committees may be 
elected to hold office for two or three weeks at a 
time, whose duty it shall be to put the work away, 
clear tables and sweep up scraps. Their names 
should be put on the blackboard or in some 
prominent place, and kept in evidence during 
each term of office. In this way the work of all 
will be fairly divided, and not always fall on one 
or two willing volunteers. 

If another story on the undesirability of choos- 
ing “The Richest Kingdom” is wanted, after 
recalling Zaccheus, tell “‘ The Golden Touch,” 
by Hawthorne. This is adapted for telling to 
children in Stories Children Need, by Carolyn 
Sherwin Bailey. Let it be one of the stories from 
the wise man’s pack suggested by a golden rose. 

If in connection with the missionary enterprise, 
the children seem disinclined to finish work once 
started, or to leave before the work room is picked 
up, today or in some future program take from the 
wise man’s pack “The Jack-o’-Lantern,” from 
Rollo’s Vacation, by Abbott. (Also found in 
Ethics for Children, by Cabot, page 68.) 


Report of School A 


Forming a Council 

(It is a great pity the council was not formed 
at the beginning. Children are perfectly capable 
of taking charge and conducting things in an 
orderly way. Problem of disorder would not 
have been so great.) 

Leaver: I can’t hear anybody, because you’re 
all talking. Last month I visited a children’s 
council. There was a chairman, and when a 
child wanted to speak, he stood ‘up, and the 
chairman recognized him by speaking his name. 
How would you like that? (The idea took. 
Frankie was appointed temporary chairman.) 

FRANKIE (following instructions): Nominations 
for chairman are in order. Who wants to nomi- 
nate anybody for chairman? 

(Lawrence, Anne, Stuart, Mabel, Marian rose. 
Chairman recognized each in turn.) 

LAWRENCE: I nominate John for chairman. 

FRANKIE: Anne? 

Anne: I nominate Stuart. 


FRANKIE: Stuart? 

Stuart: I nominate John. 

FRANKIE: Mabel? 

MaseEt: I nominate Tina. 

FRANKIE: Marian? 

Martian: I nominate Tina, too. 

LEADER: One person needs only one nomina- 
tion. Now we will vote. Mr. Chairman, take 
up the nominations one by one and ask those who 
vote to raise their hands or stand up. 

Frankie: All who want John to be chairman 
raise your hands. 

(Almost unanimous.) 

Frankie: All who want Stuart raise your 
hands. 

(Equally unanimous. Leader explained that 
each person can vote for only one. Much resent- 
ment felt at this! The vote was recalled and 
taken over.) 

Frankie: All who want Stuart raise your 
hands. 

(Five responded.) 

FRANKIE: All who want John raise your hands. 
Hey, John, raise your hand. You want to vote 
for yourself, don’t you? 

(Leader explained that this is not done as a rule. 
John being duly elected took the chair. He 
hauled it out of the circle and presided in a very 
dignified fashion, feeling it incumbent upon him 
to comment upon every report.) 

CHAIRMAN: Well, what shall we talk about first? 

Leaver: Mr. Chairman, before we go any 
further, wouldn’t it be well to vote how long a 
chairman should hold office? There are only 
about ten weeks left, and it might be better to 
divide them so that others could hold office. 

CuHArRMAN: All right. How many want me to 
be chairman for four weeks? 

LEADER: Perhaps it would be better to ask the 
council how long any office should be held? 

CuarrmMaN: All right. How long do you think 
any office should be held? 

(Four children rose, were recognized in turn, 
and suggested one, two, three and four weeks 
respectively. A vote was taken, three weeks 
being the decision.) 

Leaver: In the council meetings I saw, the 
different members gave the kind of reports which 
you all bring tome. The difference is that we all 


148 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


talk at once and no one hears the others, while 
they are recognized in turn by the chairman and 
each has a chance to talk and listen to the others. 
You started to tell me—all at once — about 
the signs of spring you’d seen. This would be a 
good chance to report so that we all might hear. 

CHARMAN: Has anybody anything to report? 
(several children rose) Anne? 

ANNE: I saw some more pussy-willows. 

CHaAtRMAN: Good for you. Lawrence? 

LAWRENCE: I saw a robin. 

CHAIRMAN: That’s good too. Tina? 

Trina: I saw two birds building their nest. 

CuarrmMan: Um-hm. Frankie? 

FRANKIE: I saw five bluebirds. 

CHAIRMAN: That’s going some. 
else? 


Anybody 


Leaver: Mr. Chairman, if there are no more 
reports, suppose we discuss last Sunday’s service. 
We started that too, but all talked at once. 

CHarRMAN: Anybody got anything to say 
about last Sunday’s service? (several rose) Tina? 


Tina: We were too noisy. 
CHarRMAN: Anne? 

ANNE: We changed classes noisily. 
CHAIRMAN: Stuart? 


Sruart: We talked and laughed and hollered 
instead of paying attention. 


149 


CHAIRMAN: You are all right. (Seemed at a 
loss what to do nezt.) 

Leaver: Could you get suggestions as to 
making it better tomorrow? 

CHarrMAN: How can we make it better to- 
morrow? (One or two had tired of the strain of 
this way of conducting a session. Stuart first lay 
on the nezt chair, then rolled to the ground. Several 
children had risen.) Anne? 

ANNE: We can use our self-control better. 

LEADER (to chairman): Any suggestions about 
reminding each other if we forget? 

CHAtRMAN: We can use our self-control. 
if we forget what shall we do? Tommy? 

Tommy: Do this. (Making C, the deaf and 
dumb sign.) 

CHAIRMAN: That’s one way. Anne? 

Anne: Hold up Jesus’ picture. 

Cuttp: Or the flag. 

ANNE: Oh, yes, the Christian Flag. 

LeapeR: Who shall hold it up? Will you 
appoint some one to come early and take charge 
of it? 

Boys’ Cuorus: You know me, John! 

Cuarrman (looking from one to the other. Dis- 
gusted glance at Stuart on the floor): I might 
appoint Stuart if he was standing up on his feet! 
(Waited. Stuart gradually came upright.) Well, 
I'll appoint Stuart. 


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AT SQHOOL WITH 
THE GREAT TEACHER 


A SUNDAY AND WEEKDAY COURSE 


(IN THREE PARTS) 
PART III 
APRIL, MAY, JUNE 


FOR CHILDREN APPROXIMATELY 
EIGHT YEARS OF AGE 


BY 
JEANETTE ELOISE PERKINS 
IN EDITORIAL COLLABORATION WITH 
FRANCES WELD DANIELSON 


EVERYDAY CHRISTIAN LIVING SERIES 


THE PILGRIM PRESS 
BOSTON CHICAGO 


CopynicHt 1924 
By SIDNEY A. WESTON 


Printed in the United States of America 


THE JORDAN & MORE PRESS 
BOSTON 


CONTENTS 


TWENTY-SEVENTH Sunpay (April) : j ; : 

Story, ‘‘ When Jesus was Angry;’’ Visit to church auditorium; Possibilities of ehurch 
project. Reports on: “ Florrie’s Bluff;’’ Appreciation of God’s House.” 

TWENTY-SEVENTH WEEKDAY . : : : : ‘ ; 
Hike. Reports on: “The Friendship Project;”’ “ John Plays Big Brother;” “ Con- 
sulting Florrie’s Mother.” 

Twenty-Eicuta Sunpay (April: Palm Sunday) , 
Suggested story and dramatization of the Triumphal Entry; “ The Story of Jesus’ Last 
Days on Earth.”” Reportson: ‘“ Happy Reference to Children’s Decorations; ‘ Re- 
sponsibility Recognized; ’’ “‘ The Christian Flag;’’ ‘‘ Seeing the Connection; ” ‘“ Palm 
Sunday Program.” 

Twenty-ErcHtH WEEKDAY ; : ; ; ; 
Preparation for Easter.. Reports on: ‘‘ Letter Sent to Class during Week;” ‘ Human 
Nature in Evidence; ”’ “ Criticising the Hike;”’ ‘‘ Enthusiasm in Work;” ‘“‘ The Rebus 
Letter.” Easter Stories: “A Lesson in Faith;” ‘“ The Caterpillar’s Journey;” 


“ What the Grub Found Out.” 

Twenty-Ninty Sunpay (April: Easter) . : ; 
Poem, “ There Was a King in Nazareth;”’ “‘ The Easter Story.” Reports on: “ Depart- 
mental Easter Program;” “ Easter Program with Entire School ” (composite story of 
Jesus); “‘ Before and After Program; ”’ “‘ Another Side of Florrie.”’ . 

Twenty-Ninty WEEKDAY ; ; ; : ; ; ; 
Work and Story Possibilities. Stories: ‘“ The Little Girl Who Played All the Time; ” 
“ In the Path of the Tornado.”’ Report on ‘“‘ Spring Hike.” 

TuHirTIETH SuNDAY (April) : , : ‘ : : 
Original spring service; Story, ‘“‘ Peter’s Lie; ’ Suggestion for composing song. Report 
on “ Broom Brigade.” 

TuHIRTIETH WEEKDAY 2 : , 
Work and Story; ‘‘ George Kling’s Gift ’ (including ‘‘ The Widow’s Mite ”). Report 
on “ White Wings.”’ 

Tuirty-First Sunpay (April-May). : P é ; ; 
Criticism of last Sunday’s service; Use of “‘ picture gallery; ” Worship service sugges- 
tions; Picture study; Story, “ Peter and John and a Lame Man.” Reports on: “ Popu- 
larity of Our Class; “ Worship Service Growing Out of Weekday Activity.” 


Tuirty-First WEEKDAY. : fk ; : ; : : ; 
Hiking and Planning. Reports on: “ Good Sportsmanship; ” ‘ Alternative for Hike.” 

THIRTY-SECOND SuNDAY (May) : , : : : : : : ; 
Great Teacher dramatization; Mothers’ Day program; Possible gift for church. Re- 
ports on: “ A Mothers’ Day Inspiration; ” ‘“‘ Council Meeting.” 

TuHirty-SECOND WEEKDAY : 2 : : : : : F 
Various Plans; Story, “ Half-Fimished Land.” Reports on: ‘ Stuart Will not Spoil 
this Hike;”’ “Tina is Not Weary in Well-doing;” “ Songs about Teachers are Not 
Forgotten;”’ ‘‘ Council versus Action.” 


ili 


PAGE 
151 


154 


155 


158 


165 


169 


174 


177 


18h 


184. 


185 


187 


iv CONTENTS 


Tuirtry-lamp Sunpay (May) . : , ; ; : : ; ; : 
Preparation for Children’s Day and Exhibit. Reports on: ‘Spring Worship Service 
Prepared by Anne;”’ “ Children Plan their Exhibit; ” ‘‘ Children’s Day Service Grows 
Naturally.” . 


Trirty-T HIRD WEEKDAY. ; : é 4 : : : ; : : d 
Planning the Exhibit. Reports on: “ Exhibit Plans;” Dramatization Saves the Day.” 


Turrty-FourtH SunpAY (May) . : : : : : : 
Talk, on “ Be Not Weary in Well-doing; ’’ Story, ““ The Man at the Pool.” 


Turery-FourtH WEEKDAY (May) . 4 : : ‘ 4 ; : ; 
The Exhibit; Story, ‘The Boy Who Learned Most.” Reports on: “ The Tragedy of 
Karl’s ‘Bible’; ” ‘‘ Whole-hearted Preparations; ”” “ The Exhibit;”’ “ Overheard at the 
Exhibit; ‘“ Real Hosts and Hostesses;’’ ‘‘ Tributes to Our Class.” 


Tuirty-Firra SunpDAy (June) . : d : : { : F : 
Reviewing the Exhibit; Poem, ‘ Children Who Walk in Jesus’ Way.” 

Tuinty-FirtH WEEKDAY : s : : ‘ : : ; : ; 
Final Preparations for Children’s Day. Report on “ The Friendship Project.” 


Turrty-SixtH Sunpay (June: Children’s Day) : : P ; : 
Reports on: “ Our Class in the Service; ‘* Our Class through the Summer.” 


203 


204 


TIME DIVISIONS OF SUNDAY SESSIONS 


Plan I. Four Periods 


First Departmental Period . 

(Opening Service of Worship) 
First Class Period 

(Classes Separated by Grades) 
Second Departmental Period 


(Worship and Fellowship) 
Second Class Period 


(Classes Separated by Grades) 
Brief Dismissal , : : ; 


Plan Il. Two Periods 
Departmental Worship Service 


Class Period ; : ; i ‘ : 
(Classes Separated by Grades) 
Closing Service . , 
Plan III. Three Periods 
First Class Period : 
Departmental Worship Period 
Second Class Period 


Brief Dismissal . 


10 minutes 
15 minutes 
15 minutes 
15 minutes 
fc bd + 

5 minutes 


60 minutes 


. 20-25 minutes 
. 30-35 minutes 


5-10 minutes 


60 minutes 


15 minutes 
25 minutes 
15 minutes 

5 minutes 


60 minutes 


Plan I is the plan followed by both experiment schools, and in outlining the programs in this course. 
The same material may be used with a different time arrangement. 
REPORTS FROM EXPERIMENT SCHOOLS 


Children’s responses are noted where they actually occurred; other reports from Schools A and 
B, the two experiment stations, appear at the close of programs. 


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TWENTY-SEVENTH SUNDAY 
April 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 
(To be prepared by the children) 


School A. Used the same service as 
last Sunday, prepared by boys. 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Paving the Way for New Interest. (Show 
the picture of the cleansing of the temple. Tell 
or read the story, recalling Jesus’ love for his 
Father’s house even as a boy. After a suitable 
introduction, may be read the account in Dean 
Hodge’s When the King Came, pages 304 [second 
paragraph], 305, 306, or the following story told:) 


School A. Children had been looking 
forward to this story ever since it was first 
referred to after a display of temper in the 
class. 

ANNE (pointing to the picture): That’s 
the only time Jesus got really mad. 

AnotHer: He whipped those people. 

Joon: He did not! He never hurt 
people, did he, Miss Bradley? 

Leaver: Listen to the story and see if 
you don’t love him even better for it. 


Introduction. Did you ever collect old coins 
and stamps? If you did, you know how from 
time to time countries change the pictures on 
them. New designs are made, and the old ones 
are not used any more. 


School A. John had a bright new silver 
dollar, which, with Florrie’s interest in 
collecting old coins, provided an excellent 
point of contact. 


The Jews had at one time made a certain piece 
of money called the half-shekel. But the Jewish 
half-shekel had not been made now for a long 
time. The Romans ruled Jesus’ country, and the 
coins now used had the face of the Roman em- 
peror stamped upon them. 


Story. 
Wuen Jesus Was ANGRY 
(Bible references: Matt. 21:12, 13; Mark 
11 : 15-17; Luke 19 : 45-48; John 2 : 13-16.) 
There was a big celebration in Jerusalem. 


Hundreds of thousands of Jews were in the city, 
and every one of the hundreds of thousands, rich 
and poor alike, visited the beautiful temple. 
Every one of the men, rich and poor alike, had to 
pay a temple tax. The money was supposed to 
be used for keeping up the services of the temple, 
but really the services cost very little. The 
priests who had them in charge took all that was 
left over. They were rich, and there were many 
of them. Poor people’s taxes supported them and 
made them rich, but they didn’t care. You can 
see that they were not like the leaders of our 
churches today. They thought up all sorts of 
schemes to get even more out of the poor. 

They said that everybody must pay the temple 
tax in a certain coin. This meant that their 
Roman money must be changed for the Jewish 
half-shekel. There were money-changers to do it. 
The money-changers paid the priests for letting 
them carry on this business. Every time the 
money-changers changed a Roman coin for a 
Jewish one they charged extra for it, keeping part 
for themselves, and giving the rest to the priests. 

There was another way the priests had of 
cheating the poor people in order to get rich them- 
selves. They told the people that to please God 
they must offer sacrifices to him at the temple. 
This was an old, old custom, and it meant that 
if you were a good Jew, you would buy a sheep or 
a lamb, an ox or a calf, or perhaps, if you were 
poor, only two doves, and would give them to the 
priests to burn on the altar. The priests them- 
selves had charge of the buying and selling of 
these animals and birds, and charged whatever 
they liked for them. 


You can easily see, since everybody wanted to 
offer a sacrifice, and could get their animals only 
from the priests, that there was plenty of oppor- 
tunity to make a great deal of money unfairly. 

The poor people knew it was unfair. They 
knew they were being cheated, and that others 
were growing rich from their money, but there 
was no one to stand up for them. So the priests 
had it all their own way. They held such high 
positions in the temple and in court that they felt 
perfectly safe. Who would dare accuse them of 
doing wrong? There was just one who did dare. 

Jesus came to Jerusalem for the celebration of 
the Passover. As he went toward the temple he 


151 


152 


could hear the bleating of sheep which were being 
driven by hundreds into the temple court, — yes, 
right inside: through the gates and into the 
courts which long ago people who loved God had 
said should be entered with thanksgiving and with 
praise. The temple was built to be God’s house. 
The great paved court, or yard around it, was a 
part of it, and was for anybody who wanted to 
come and pray. Do you remember how Jesus 
loved the temple as a boy? He called it his 
Father’s house, and was found there after his 
parents had lost him for three days. 

Now as he went up toward his Father’s house, 
the din and the tumult coming from it were deafen- 
ing. Above the noise made by hundreds of birds 
and animals on sale came the voices of men 
calling from all directions, shouting out their 
wares. This was what was happening in his 
Father’s house, — his Father’s house built for 
praise and prayer! 

As he went in through the gates the sight that 
met his eyes was no more like a church than the 
sounds that met his ears. Stalls for cattle; 
wooden cages of birds piled one on top of another; 
tables where money-changers sat noisily making 
the change from one kind of coin to another; men 
arguing and protesting at the unfair prices they 
had to pay; everywhere, everywhere, nothing but 
noise and confusion. 

Suddenly Jesus’ disciples saw a different side of 
their teacher. They had been with him a long 
time, and often had had occasion to wonder that 
he never grew angry when men called him names, 
tried to stop his work, or hurt him. Those in- 
sults were meant for him, and he thought so little 
about himself he did not notice them. He seemed 
to understand that the people who offered them 
didn’t know any better. He was only sorry for 
their ignorance. 

But now as Peter and John and the rest looked 
at their Master he was almost like a stranger to 
them. Jesus was looking about him. He saw 
his Father’s house being turned into a noisy mar- 
ket-place. He saw the priests, whose business it 
was to keep holy this house of God, not only 
allowing the traffic, but encouraging it and grow- 
ing rich by it. He saw the poor being robbed on 
every hand. He saw the money-changers charg- 
ing prices to which they had no right. He saw 
the tradesmen cheating the visiting farmers and 
shepherds and carpenters and widows alike out of 
money needed for food for their children. And his 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


eyes blazed with a mighty fury. These people 
did know better. 

He made a lash, a whip of cords, and soon there 
was more commotion than ever in the temple 
courts. But the shouts were of a different kind 
now; they were cries of anger and of terror, and 
they came from the cattle dealers, the money- 
changers and the pigeon traders as Jesus drove 
their animals from their stalls, and the men 
themselves from their places. He overturned the 
tables of the money-changers and scattered their 
money, and they dared not pick it up. He said 
to the pigeon dealers, ‘‘ Take these things away!” 
and to them all he said, “It is written, “My 
house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you 
have made it a den of robbers!’ Whip in hand, 
he drove them all through the gates. 

There was no arguing from the priests or any 
one else; they simply fled before the anger in his 
eyes and the power of his whip. They knew as 
well as any one that they were doing wrong, but 
nobody before Jesus had cared enough for the 
people they were cheating, or for God’s house 
which they were spoiling, to dare to stop them. 

And so the disciples found that their teacher 
could be angry — where anger was needed for the 
sake of others. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
(Alternative for children’s program) 


(To prepare the department for an observation 
and appreciation lesson on their Father’s house, 
the leader or assistant may sing, ““ The Church,” 
No. 9, in Songs for Little People, or read it as a 
poem. 

(Leader says that the minister will take the 
department into the church, and suggests that as 
he leads them around it they notice everything 
about it which seems to make it a house of prayer, 
or a place where it is easy to think of their heavy- 
enly Father. They may notice the height, 
cleanliness, order, artistry and “ the golden light ” 
softly falling “ through arching windows high and 
bright.” 

(The minister may speak of next Sunday as a 
special Sunday, and suggest the children’s getting 
decorations for the church or church school, 
palms or pussy-willows. 

(If it is not possible for the minister to do for 
the department something similar to what he did 
for the third grade in the fall, the superintendent 
may take the children into the church.) 


? 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Ways of Service. (With the picture of 
their own church interior in mind, the class will 
be able to appreciate a little what such desecra- 
tion of it as Jesus found in the temple would 
mean.) 

Can you imagine how you would feel to have 
your church used for the kind of thing that was 
going on in the temple courts? Should you even 
like the church yard to be filled with noisy trades- 
men offering animals for sale — and cheating the 
poor people while they were doing it? Could our 
own church lawn be any prettier? Is there any- 
thing that we could do to keep it beautiful? 

(Interest in this may start a project which 
could be carried on with the work for a far-away 
field. “ Picking up” the church lawn, keeping 
other children from tearing down the shrubbery, 
planting shrubbery, starting and caring for a 
little flower garden for those in the church who are 
ill, are all possibilities which may grow into a 
larger project of good-citizenship. 

(If there is time the children may paste in their 
books pictures of the last two stories of Zaccheus 
and the cleansing of the temple. They could 
place the characters in their proper “ kingdoms ”’ 
while doing this.) 


Report of School A 


Florrie’s Bluff 

Fiore (in quarantine for Saturday’s misbe- 
havior): Miss Bradley, Betty and I aren’t coming 
to the class on Saturday any more, — we’re 
going to the story hour at the library. 

OTHER CHILDREN (not to be outdone): But we 
have hikes, and that’s lots better. 

FLorRIE (inventing rapidly): Well, we have 
hikes, too; the Library Story Hour’s going to 
have hikes! 

Appreciation of God’s House 

Assistant (also chairman of church decoration 
committee): Can this department help trim the 
church for Palm Sunday and Easter? Pussy- 
willows would be pretty. 

ENTIRE Tutrp GRADE: Can’t we go on a hike 
and get some, Miss Bradley? 

Fiorrie (dreamily): Wouldn’t it be nice if we 


153 


could learn something to say in the church on 
Easter! 

Minister (taking the children into the church): 
Did you notice what kind of a day it is? 


Cuitp: It looks as if it was going to rain. I 
brought my umbrella. 

Minister: But it looks as if the sun were 
shining in here, doesn’t it? These windows are 
bright on the dullest days. 

Critp: They have to be, because the glass is 
like the sun — it’s yellow. 

Minister: What else do you like about our 
church? 

FRANKIE: I like those gold organ pipes. 

EILEEN (piously): I like to give money to the 
church. 

Tommy (looking up): It’s 
temple. 


high —like the 


GRATIFIED LEADER (visualizing the temple at 
Jerusalem): So it is. 

Tommy (continuing): You know, the temple 
that the Masons have! 

As the minister said that next Sunday was 
Palm Sunday and told the story of its origin, the 
children pretended to wave palms and sang 
praise songs. 

Minister: I hope you will all come to church 
next Sunday. 

FLorriE (in stage whisper): Miss Bradley! 
Ask him if we can’t learn something for Easter to 
say on the platform. 

Minister (when Florrie’s remark was referred 
to him): Miss Fairfield would like an Easter 
service for the church school. 

Miss FarrFreLp (Sunday-school superintendent): 
I’ve been thinking about the Thanksgiving service 
that the third-grade class gave us, and wondering 
if they couldn’t prepare an Easter service for the 
church school. 

LEADER (to children): Would you like that? 
Couldn’t we tell the rest of the school the story 
of Jesus and each of you choose the part you 
want to tell? 

CHILDREN: Yes, we could! 

The rest of the hour was devoted to choosing. 
story pictures from the gallery. 


TWENTY-SEVENTH WEEKDAY 
A Hike 


Go on a hike to get decorations for Palm Sun- 
day, either for the Primary room or for the 
church. 

It is possible that whoever is in charge of the 
church decorations may be interested enough to 
let the class take a trip to the florist’s to collect 
the order, and to bring it to the church. 

An alternative is to continue work on the pro- 
ject. 


Report of School A 


Went for pussy-willows, brought home many 
which formed part of the church decorations for 
Palm Sunday. 

The Friendship Project 

Two rolls of films were used taking groups to 
send to Virginia Hollow. At Anne’s suggestion, 
“We ought to have the church too; they sent us 
one of their church, you know,” one was taken 
showing the church and thirteen children on the 
steps. Others showed the church lawn, the hill 
where lunch was eaten, and a procession with 
pussy-willows. 

John Plays Big Brother 

LEADER (at the first pussy-willow tree): No one 
must try to get these who hasn’t high rubber 
boots. It’s too near the water. 

Douglas, a second-grade child who came with 
Frankie, immediately fell in. He was much 
scared, and very uncomfortable. He had gone 
in over his boots, and they were full. 

Leaver: I’m sorry, Douglas, but you'll have 
to go home and change your clothes. We'll be 
right in that next field over there. If you hurry 
you can come back and find us. 

Dovuetas (weeping): I — don’t — know — the 
way! 

Joun: Miss Bradley, Pll go back with him. 
I'll take him to the road, and if I can’t show him 
the way from there, I'll take him all the way 
home. 

Consulting Florrie’s Mother 

The sweetest, altogether most helpful child on 
this hike was Florrie, just out of quarantine. 

During the week leader had gone to her 
mother for help. Mrs. Thompson understood 
from Florrie that she was “in quarantine,” but 
didn’t know why. Leader explained about her 
making Ada cry, and about former offenses. 


Mrs. Tuompson: I don’t think that Florrie 
senses the seriousness of hurting others. 

Leaver: Of course she doesn’t. But don’t you 
think she should have it impressed upon her? 

Mrs. Tuompson: Yes, I do. The last two 
weeks she has seemed to lose interest in the class. 
I’ve been surprised that it kept up as long as it 
did. She never keeps her interest in anything 
long. But all winter she has looked forward to 
Saturday until lately. She told me she didn’t 
like “‘ this quarantine business,” and she wasn’t 
going back. 

If I make her go, and she doesn’t want to, 
she'll be cross and apt to do the same sort of 
thing. 

It seems as if she ought to stay away, if she 
upsets the others so. It takes all your time to 
deal with her. 

Leaver: But it won’t help Florrie any to stay 
away. What she needs is to come and learn to 
control herself. 

Mrs. THompson: I’m not thinking of Florrie. 
I’m thinking of the rest. It doesn’t seem fair to 
them. 

Leaprer: But she can be so sweet, and then 
she’s a good influence for them. She’s more in- 
terested than any other child now in the class, 
making up an Easter service for the whole school. 

Mrs. THompson: She was really terribly hurt 
when she was quarantined. 

LEADER: We were too. I wish you'd tell her 
we're all looking forward to having her back, and 
perhaps you can help her think of some way to 
show Ada that she’s sorry, so she can come out 
of quarantine. 

Florrie appeared with a gift for Ada. All the 
morning she was sweet, thoughtful, quick to 
mind, and keen to see ways of helping. All the 
children noticed it. 

ANNE: She certainly is out of quarantine, isn’t 
she, Miss Bradley? 

Tina: Florrie is the nicest one here today. 

She let the others tease her until she was almost 
imposed upon. 

FLorrie (on the way home): Have I been good, 
Miss Bradley? 


LEADER (hugging her): You couldn’t have been 
better, Florrie. I love you when you’re like this. 
So do we all. : 


154 


TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY 
April [Palm Sunday] 


DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(If the children have been making up a series 
of spring programs, the leader should guide them 
in their selection of material, that today’s and 
next Sunday’s programs will be appropriate for 
Palm Sunday and Easter. 

(If the children have not provided an original 
service, the program may be divided into two 
periods, one for worship and the other for class 
instruction. There will be in the first period an 
opportunity for the whole department to study 
the picture, ‘The Triumphal Entry into Jeru- 
salem;’’ to sing the first three stanzas of “ Tell 
Me the Stories of Jesus;’’ and to hear the story 
of Palm Sunday beautifully told by Miss Thomas 
in Primary Teachers’ Text Book, Bible Stories 
for the Sunday School and Home, Course II, 
Part II. See Matt. 21 :1-11; Mark 11:1-11; 
Luke 19:29-38; John 12:12-19. There is 
also a chance for dramatic action in connection 
with the story. The children pretend they 
belonged to that band of children heralding the 
King, dividing into two groups, one outside the 
city accompanying the procession, and the other 
inside going to the gates to meet them. Entering 
the room by different doors, or coming toward the 
center from opposite ends of the room, they sing 
their hosannas together.) 


School A. Frankie (before opening 
service was over): When are we going to our 
class? 

LEADER: We have only one class period 
today because it’s a special Sunday. 

Joun: I should think if it was a special 
Sunday we'd have three classes instead of 
one. 


CLASS PERIOD 


Tue Story or Jesus’ Last Days on Eartu 

You have just heard the story of the first Palm 
Sunday. You heard how the people greeted 
Jesus, and sang to him; how the children went 
before him into the city like heralds before a 
king. 

But the rulers and the priests and the lawyers 
did not welcome him. If this man gained in 
influence, what would become of them? All 


their power would be gone, for Jesus accused 
them openly of dishonesty and wrong teaching. 
He threw the traders out of the temple, which 
made the priests furious. He healed and taught 
in the temple, and so kept winning more followers 
who wanted to make him king. And this also 
made the priests furious. They appointed clever 
lawyers to ask him trick questions, thinking to 
catch him in some answer which would be an 
excuse for arresting him. But Jesus was more 
clever than his questioners, and would not be 
caught. This made them again all the more 
furious, and more afraid. They said, ‘“‘ We 
must kill him! ” 

Poor, stupid men! They thought that by 
killing him they could get rid of him forever and 
ever! Jesus knew all the time what they were 
thinking, and how mistaken they were, —as 
if they could make people forget his teachings by 
killing him! 

He knew that he could be made a king if he 
wished. There were plenty of people right there 
in the city of Jerusalem that week who were eager 
to crown him. But he had more important busi- 
ness to do for his Father than to rule over a 
little earthly kingdom. He had to show that 
even though people should kill him, his friends 
wouldn’t lose him. His spirit would still live. 


School A. Jonn: 
don’t like. 


He tried to tell his disciples this, but they 
couldn’t understand. In order to make them 
really believe it, he would have to die, and let 
them find out that he was still alive. 

The plot to kill him grew, but instead of run- 
ning away from Jerusalem he stayed right there 
and kept on teaching and healing and showing 
people how to live. 

Then came the night when every Jew sat with 
his family or friends at a feast called the Passover. 
Jesus sent his friends to engage an upper room 
in which to celebrate the feast with his disciples. 
Some think it was that very time when his 
disciples quarreled among themselves as to who 
was greatest, and stopped only when Jesus 
himself washed their feet and made them ashamed. 

That supper is called the Lord’s Supper, or 
the Last Supper, because it was the last supper 


This is the part I 


155 


156 


Jesus had before his death. It is what we cele- 
brate in our churches when the bread and grape- 
juice are passed around, in remembrance of him. 

The time was drawing near when Jesus would 
have to leave his friends. He knew how they 
loved him; he knew they wanted him to live 
among them for years and years. He knew how: 
sad they would be when he died. So he tried 
to comfort them. He told them he was going, 
and he said, ‘‘ You cannot follow me now, but 
you shall follow me sometime. I go to be with 
my Father in heaven.” But “I will come back 
to you,” he said over and over again. “I will 
not leave you friendless. You will still see me, 
because I shall live on, and you will live on too.” 

That was a wonderful promise but the disciples 
were too sad at their Teacher’s going to under- 
stand it. They hoped he need not die; that 
perhaps he had made a mistake about it. But 
all the time one of them knew he had not made 
a mistake. One of those twelve was in the plot 
to kill Jesus, and went out while the rest were 
still sitting around the table. 


I think Jesus knew what he had gone for. 
But he went on trying to explain to his friends 
that there really is no death. 


You would think that this wouldn’t be so hard 
to understand, when God is showing us in all 
sorts of ways. When we see an ugly brown 
lily bulb we don’t say it is dead. We know that 
it will live again and bring forth a lovely blossom. 
When a little grub in the pond leaves his home 
and friends in the water we don’t say he is dying. 
We know he is only crawling out to a new life 
in the air where he will be a beautiful dragon-fly. 


School A. LAwrRENcE: Go on with the 
story, Miss Bradley. We don’t want to 
hear all that. 

JoHn: Keep still, Lawrence, that’s a 
part of the story. 


When we see a caterpillar crawl away into a 
cocoon for the winter we don’t say he is dead, 
though we never see him a caterpillar again. 
We know that he will live again in the spring in 
a much more beautiful form. The trees and 
the brown earth may look dead in winter but 
they are not dead. They are alive, storing up 
new life for the springtime. 

So Jesus tried to tell his friends that though 
he should die, he would still live on. But they 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


could not believe yet that he was going to leave 
them. They did not understand about the new 
life. 


The only one who could understand was God, 
and Jesus wished to be alone with his Father. 
They left the supper table and took a walk 
outside the city to a garden, and there leaving 
his disciples to watch, he went on a few steps 
to pray. Was it really God’s wish that his 
beloved Son should be put to death like any 
common criminal? He prayed that it need not 
be. He prayed for a long time, but because 
he wanted his Father to use him in any way he 
wished, he ended, as we know he always prayed, 
“But not my will, but yours be done.” 


In the meantime Judas, that one of the dis- 
ciples who was in the plot to kill Jesus, was 
bringing the soldiers nearer and nearer the garden. 
Jesus did not hide. Jesus did not try to escape. 
He was not afraid of anything men could do to 
him. He went out to meet them. He was 
arrested, hurried to trial, and killed. 

Loving friends took his body and laid it in a 
tomb, and then went away sorrowing. They 
thought that because Jesus was dead, they had 
lost their dearest friend. They forgot or did not 
understand his promisies that he would come 
back. How could he, after he was dead? 


Then one after another found out. He did 
come back. He came to the very friends who 
were grieving for him. Soldiers might kill his 
body, but the real Jesus, the part of him that 
made him different from any one else, his spirit, 
they could not kill. The real Jesus still lived, 
and would live always. 


Do you wonder that the disciples’ sorrowing 
turned to joy? They had not lost their leader! 
More than that, his living on showed them 
that they too would live on, even after their 
bodies had died. It was almost too wonderful 
to believe, but once they knew it was true they 
couldn’t wait to tell others. They went through 
everything to spread the news, — prison, ship- 
wreck, every sort of danger. 

And that is the reason we know it, and because 
we know it, we celebrate a day in spring, when 
everything is coming to new life, and call it 
Easter. It is one of the happiest days of the 
year, for it reminds us again that people’s bodies 
only really die. God takes our friends to him- 
self, and they live forever! 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Report of School A 
Happy Reference to Children’s Decorations 


At least five children had accepted the minister’s | 


invitation to attend church and were amply 
rewarded. They came to class with beaming 
faces. The minister had seen them and spoken 
of their pussy-willows. He had said that service 
for the church and for others was like strewing 
palm branches before Jesus. He had spoken 
of the gathering of the pussy-willows for the 
church as a beautiful symbol of the children’s 
procession. 

Responsibility Recognized 

Before the story, leader asked everybody to 
rise, stand on tip-toe and stretch as high as 
possible. John stood on his chair to stretch 
higher. Karl, a new boy today, followed his 
example. 

LEADER: See, John, what you have done. 
Karl thinks he must do everything you do. 

JoHN (instantly taking in situation and getting 
down): Oh, ’scuse me, Karl! 

The Christian Flag 

Leaver (after the story): I thought that after 
hearing all these stories of Jesus you would feel 
as if you loved him — 

Joun: I don’t feel it. I do love him. 

Leaver: Now that you know what it means 
to carry the Christian flag, I thought you might 
like to have some to wear all the time, some 
that wouldn’t wear out like the little paper ones 
Florrie made. 

Joun: I have mine at home yet. 

Leaver: Little buttons or pins with the 
picture of the Christian flag on them, and the 
words “‘ We follow this flag ’’ — 

CHILDREN: O Miss Bradley! 
have them? 

Leaver: I thought you’d like them on Easter 
Sunday. 

CHILDREN: O Miss Bradley! 
boy! 

Seeing the Connection 

In the afternoon leader told to Anne, Ruth 
and Elsie “The Caterpillar’s Journey.” (See 
page 161.) 

LEADER: But the caterpillar couldn’t under- 
stand the promises. He was discouraged and — 


ANNE: Just like the disciples! 
Palm Sunday Program - 
Quiet Music. 


When can we 


Oh, good! Oh, 


157 


Song. “God is Love” (Songs for Little 
People). 
Conversation. The Waking of the Flowers. 


(Play by first grade; one child acting as sun, 
one as rain, others flowers. Suggestion about 
showing the rest of the school, next Sunday, 
how the flowers waken.) 

Song. ‘ God is Love.” 

Conversation. The Return of the Birds. 

(Conversation about this, and Bible verses. 
Suggestion that the second grade tell about this 
next Sunday.) 

Song. “ For lo, the winter is past ’’ (Melodies). 

Conversation. The Promise of New Life. 

(Leader reminds third-grade children that they 
wished to tell others the story of Jesus in the 
Easter service; after next song suggests that 
as she holds up picture, children who wish to tell 
the story of it briefly, rise and do so.) 


Song. “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus ”’ (first 
stanza). 

Pictures and Brief Stories. (By third 
grade. Annunciation. Nativity.) 

Song. “ Away in a Manger.” 


Pictures and Stories. 
Shepherds with flocks 
Wise-men with gifts 
Post-cards of Nazareth 
Christ among the doctors 


Song. “Gentle Child of Nazareth.” 
Pictures and Stories. 
In the streets of Capernaum 
The first four disciples 
Teaching the disciples to pray 
The Lord’s Prayer. 
Pictures and Stories. 
The Good Samaritan 
Jesus with the children 
Song. ‘Tell Me the Stories of Jesus ’’ (second 
stanza). 
Pictures and Stories. 
Feeding the five thousand 
Zaccheeus 
Washing the disciples’ feet 
Cleansing the temple 
Poem. “ Hosanna’”’ (in Appendix of Primary 
Teachers’ Text Book, Course 2, Part II, Inter- 
national Graded Lessons, read by leader). 
Song. “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus” (third 
stanza). 


Offering. 


TWENTY-EIGHTH WEEKDAY 


Preparation for Easter 


Children’s Cooperation 


Before this session write or telephone to each 
member of the class to bring an illustration of 
something which looks entirely different before 
and after it wakes up or comes to life again, i.e., 
seeds, flowers; acorn, oak tree; grub, dragon- 
fly; caterpillar, cocoon, butterfly; bulb, flower- 
ing plant; eggs, chickens. Perhaps each child 
can bring pictures of both stages. Before or 
after matching them up tell “The Boy who 
Discovered Spring,” from Why the Chimes Rang, 
Alden; or “ What the Grub Found Out,” “A 
Lesson in Faith,” or ‘ The Caterpillar’s Journey,” 
found at the end of this program. 

Plan how to use the pictures in the Easter 
service Sunday, or let the class make a rebus 
letter to send an absent member, using all the 
illustrations brought in. With the letter could 
be sent a typewritten copy of the Easter story 
heard Sunday, or today’s story, or both. 


Worship Service 
If the class is preparing a worship service or 
special program for Easter, it can be gone over 
now. ‘This may include, as it did with School 
A, choosing stories from the picture gallery 
and framing sentences which will form a complete 
short story of Jesus. 


Report of School A 


Letter Sent to Class During Week 
Dear : 

This letter is to ask you, — 

To bring to the class on Saturday pictures of 
something which looks entirely different before 
and after it wakes up or comes to life again, like 
seeds and flowers; acorn and oak-tree; grub and 
dragon-fly; caterpillar and butterfly; bulb and 
flowering plant; a winter scene, and the same 
scene in summer. If we get some good ones 
perhaps we could write a rebus letter (you know 
the kind, with pictures in some places instead 
of words), about Easter and living again, to 
send to Mary, who has not been well since she 
went away. 

To bring your note-book or “ Bible” which 
you are making, if you have taken it home. 
There are some new sheets to be put in. 

To be ready to give your part of the story of 

158 


Jesus which the class voted to give in the service . 
Sunday. I am sending to each one the parts 
of the story that he or she chose, and if they are 
told in the right order, they will make a real 
story of Jesus, from his birth to his dying and 
living again. 

Most of the class promised Miss Fairfield that 
she could depend on us for this Easter service. 
But it is not Miss Fairfield for whom we shall 
really do it. By showing what we have learned 
about our great Teacher, perhaps some others 
will love him better and want to try to be like 
him. So we shall really be doing something for 
him. 

On Sunday we shall have our new badges, 
to show that we are trying to be like him. 

On Saturday we can do all these things, if 
everybody helps: 

1. Play some outdoor games. 

2. Try the story of Jesus over by ourselves, 
to see if it sounds as we should like to have it. 
(So be ready with your part. You need not 
tell it just as it is written; use your own words). 

3. Have a Council Meeting to, — 

(1) Elect a chairman for the next three weeks. 

(2) Appoint a Cleaning-up Committee to 
serve two weeks. 

(3) Hear spring reports. 

(4) Tell how we could have made last week’s 
hike better. 

4. Make Mary an illustrated letter. 

5. Work on our books. 

6. Look at the new pictures of Virginia Hollow, 
and our own pictures taken last Saturday to 
send them there. 

That is a lot to do on Saturday, isn’t it? 


With love, 
“* Miss Bradley.” 


Human Nature in Evidence 

Stuart in a grouch. He had received a letter 
during the week about his grumbling. When 
leader said, ‘‘ Come on, Stuart, you come next,” 
he imurmured something about ‘“ insultin’ 
letters,’’ and remained where he was. 

Played indoor games in which Stuart was 
unfortunately allowed the role of an ill-tempered 
tradesman. This made legitimate the exercise 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


of the very grouchiness which the leader wished 
to dispel. 

Preparation of the Easter service was far from 
“‘ whole-hearted.” Stuart said it was too noisy. 
Karl didn’t want to be on the end. Frankie 
didn’t want to be between two girls. Harriet 
didn’t want to join at all. Betty and Tommy 
weren't there. 

Children showed no evidence during this 
session of ever having attended the class before 
or of ever having heard of self-control, kindliness, 
or even civility! Florrie went home from the 
council meeting peeved because the “ cheerman ”’ 
wouldn’t recognize her. 


“ Douglas fell in.” 

“ But John was nice to offer to go home with 
him.” 
“We were too noisy.” 

“ We couldn’t have minded better.” 

“I could have minded better when you told 
us not to drink the water.” 

“We ate too many cookies.” 


Enthusiasm in Work 

Put in the “ Bibles” typewritten verses of 
“Tell Me the Stories of Jesus’ after each child 
had decorated first word of verse. 

On leaving the church untidiness of the lawn 
was noticed. We swept, raked and carted away 
papers and twigs, to make it presentable for 
Easter. 

MINISTER (passing): This is the first evidence 
of practical Christianity I’ve seen! 

PresipENT oF LaptgEs’ Arp: I vote for this 
class. They’re the real workers! 


The Rebus Letter 

(Composed by leader from familiar stories 
and pictures brought by children, supplemented 
by illustrations from Nature Magazine.) 


Dear Mary, 

We thought you would like to get a 
( letter ) from our ( picture of Our Class _) 
so we are wriling an Easter story with the 
( pictures ) we have brought. 

Once there was a little elf boy who came to 
live on the earth. He came in the summer time, 
whenevery( garden )wasfullof( flowers). 
He made friends with every ( bird ) and 
every ( rabbit ) and every ( caterpillar ). 
He liked everything. He talked to the old 
( toad ) that hopped around, and he loved 


159 


each ( butterfly ) that flew among the 
( flowers). 


He decided to spend the (_ winter 
earth. 

Then one day the wind blew the ( leaves) 
off the ( trees ) and he cried, ‘‘ Oh, dear, the 
trees are dying!” But his friend, the hermit, 
with whom he lived, said, “Oh, no, only the 
leaves have left. You will see that everything 
still lives.” 

Then the elf boy saw the ( birds ) and he 
said, ‘‘ They are leaving, too!” 

“They will come back,” said the hermit. 

But one day the elf boy saw a ( cocoon ) 
where his friend the caterpillar had been. “ He 
is dead!” wept the elf boy. ‘See, he is stiff 
and has no life! ”’ 

“He will live again,” 
** Be patient.” 


) on the 


the hermit told him. 


But the elf boy could not understand. He 
had never heard, you see, of spring, or that 
nothing really dies. The whole earth looked 
dead to him. It was like this,( winterscene ), 
everywhere. 

Even his smiling pool was covered with ice. 
Then something happened. The( sun _ ) shone 
one day especially warmly. A little girl came 
by with some (_pussy-willows ). “It’s 
spring! ’’ she called out. 

The elf boy wondered what it meant. He 
ran down to the smiling ( pool ). The ice 
was gone! There was life in the pool! He 
heard spring voices, but all he could see was 
( frog’s eggs ). The hermit told him that 
even that was alive. And the elf boy watched 
until one day he found some ( tadpoles) 
instead of ( eggs ). And then one day each 
little tadpole had lost its tail and become a 
( frog ). ‘“‘ Why,” said the elf boy, ‘ nothing 
stays the same, does it? But I don’t care, if 
everything keeps on living.” 

Then one day, under some brown leaves, 
where he thought there was no life, he found 
some ( trailing arbutus ). Oh, how he shouted 
for joy! ‘I thought the flowers were dead,” 
he said. From the cocoon came a_ beautiful 
( moth ). “Why,” said the elf boy, “I 
thought you were a caterpillar! ” 

“So did I,”’ said the moth, “* but this is nicer.” 

‘““T thought you were dead,” said the elf boy. 

“T am living again,” replied the moth. And 


160 


that is the answer the little elf boy found every- 
where. 

Down under the water of the smiling pool was 
a little grub. He looked like a ( worm ). 

One day he crawled out of the water, up a 
lily stem, into the air. He thought he was 
dying, for he was leaving his world — the pond — 
behind forever. But the little elf boy was watch- 
ing. He saw the grub’s coat split right down 
the back and there, instead of a worm was a 
beautiful ( dragon-fly ). 

‘“Why,” said the dragon-fly, “I thought 
there was nothing beyond our world of water. 
I thought I was dying.”’ 

‘“Didn’t you know,” the elf boy explained, 
for he was growing very wise, “ didn’t you know 
that nothing really dies? I thought the 
( birds ) had gone away forever, but see, they 
are back and are building their ( nests ). I 
thought the ( flowers ) were dead, but the 
( sun ) came and the ( rain ) came, and 
now they are all living again!” 

Suddenly the elf boy heard some ( bells) 
ringing. He ran to the hermit. 

** We will walk to the village,” said the hermit, 
“ for it is Easter.” 

“What is Easter?” asked the elf boy. 

** You will see,”’ was the answer. 

In the village everybody looked so happy 
wearing ( flowers ) and -bright new clothes, 
that the elf boy asked why. 

“They are glad it is spring, and everything 
lives again,’ said the hermit. They followed 
the people to a ( church ). They stood on 
the ( steps) and listened. 

“Oh,” exclaimed the elf boy, “now I know 
what Easter means!’’ Forfromthe( church ) 
was coming the most beautiful song he had ever 
heard. These were the words: 

“ T am he that liveth and was dead; and” 

(BEHOLD I AM ALIVE FOR EVERMORE) 


( Picture of Jesus ). 


Easter Stories 
A Lesson In FaltTu 

A dying butterfly left her eggs to a caterpillar 
to care for. The caterpillar, left alone on a cab- 
bage leaf beside the eggs, asked a lark to tell her 
how she ever could nurse butterfly babies. The 
lark flew up in the blue sky to find out. 

“News, news, glorious news, friend cater- 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


pillar!’ he sang, “ but the worst of it is you 
won’t believe me! ”’ 

“T believe everything I am told,” said the 
caterpillar. 

‘Well, then, first of all, I will tell you what 
these little creatures are to eat. What do you 
think it is to be? Guess! ”’ 


‘Dew, and the honey out of flowers, I am 
afraid,” sighed the caterpillar. 

‘* No such thing, old lady! Something simpler 
than that,—something that you can get at 
quite easily.” 

“T can get at nothing quite easily but cabbage 
leaves,’ murmured the caterpillar. 

‘“* Excellent, my good friend,” cried the lark. 
‘You have found it out. You are to feed 
them with cabbage leaves.” 

‘“* Never!’ said the caterpillar. ‘It was their 
dying mother’s last request that I should do no 
such thing.” 


‘Their dying mother knew nothing about 
the matter,” said the lark. ‘“‘ But why do you 
ask me, and then disbelieve what I say? You 
have no faith.” 

‘““Oh, I believe everything I am told!” said 
the caterpillar. 

‘No, but you do not,” replied the lark. “ You 
won’t believe me even about the food and yet 
that is but a beginning of what I have to tell you. 
Why, caterpillar, what do you suppose those little 
eggs will turn out to be?” 

‘‘ Butterflies, to be sure,” said the caterpillar. 

“Caterpillars! ’’ sang the lark, and flew away. 

‘“‘T thought the lark was wise and kind,” said 
the mild green caterpillar, “ but I find that he is 
foolish and saucy.” 

“T’ll tell you something else,” cried the lark, 
coming back. ‘‘You will one day be a butterfly 
yourself.” 

‘Wretched bird!” exclaimed the caterpillar. 
“Now you are cruel as well as foolish. Go 
away!” 

‘““T told you you would not believe me,” said 
the lark. 

‘“‘T believe everything that I am told,” said 
the caterpillar, “‘ that is, everything reasonable, 
but you tell me that butterflies’ eggs are cater- 
pillars, and that caterpillars leave off crawling 
and get wings and become butterflies! Lark, 
you know it is impossible.” 


“I know no such thing,” said the lark. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


“Whether I hover over the cornfields of earth, 
or go up into the sky, I see so many wonderful 
things I see no reason why there should not be 
more. O caterpillar, it is because you never 
get beyond your cabbage leaf that you call 
anything impossible! You need to learn to 
have faith.” 

“How am I to learn to have faith?” asked 
the caterpillar. 

At that moment she felt something at her 
side. She looked around. Eight little green 
caterpillars were moving about, and had already 
made a hole in the cabbage leaf. They had 
broken from the butterfly’s eggs! 

Shame filled our green friend’s heart, but joy 
soon followed, for as the first wonder was possible, 
the second might be so, too. 

“Teach me your lesson, lark!’ she would say, 
and the lark would sing to her of the wonders 
of the earth below and of the heaven above. 

And the caterpillar talked all the rest of her 
life to her relations of the time when she would 
be a butterfly. None of them believed her. 
But she had learned the lark’s lesson of faith, 
and when she was going into her chrysalis grave, 
she said, “I shall be a butterfly some day!” 
And she was. — Adapted from ‘ Parables from 
Nature,” by Margaret Gatty. 


Tue CATERPILLAR’S JOURNEY 


Once upon a time a lazy brown caterpillar 
started out on a journey. You would not have 
thought it a very long journey — just across 
the road and under the fence to the roots of the 
big maple tree, where he thought he would spin 
himself a hammock and hide away from the cold 
winds and snow which he knew would soon come. 
But the caterpillar thought it a long way and 
full of dangers. Some careless boy or girl might 
step on him, or an automobile or wagon might 
run over him. He trembled when he thought of 
it, but one bright day he started out. He could 
see a tall white daisy on the other side of the 
road, and he thought he would stop and talk to 
her when he reached her. 

It took him a long time to cross the road, and 
when he came to the place where he had seen the 
daisy, there was no daisy there, only a tall brown 
stalk. 

“Where is she?’ he asked a robin who was 
watching him with bright eyes from a bough 
above. 


161 


The robin answered in a little song that said, 
** She is dead, she is dead.” 

“Oh!” said the caterpillar, ‘I want to talk 
to her.” 

The robin went on singing in a soft little voice, 
and soon the caterpillar knew he was saying, 
‘She shall live again, she shall live again.” 

But the caterpillar did not understand and he 
felt very sad as he went on. 

Soon he began to look about him and think 
what he would say to the friendly green grass 
which had nodded to him on the other side of 
the road. When he looked he saw there was no 
friendly green grass; everything was dry and 
hard. 

“Where is the friendly green grass? ”’ he said 
to himself. ‘“* Where can it have gone? ” 

And then came a little whisper in his ear which 
he knew was the wind, “ It is dead, it is dead.” 

The poor little caterpillar felt very lonesome 
and he put his head close to the ground as he 
cried out, “Oh! the friendly green grass, I shall 
miss it so.” 

Then he heard the wind whisper again very 
softly this time, “It shall live again, it shall 
live again.” 

But the little brown caterpillar did not under- 
stand and he felt very sad as he went on. 

By and by he came to the roots of the big 
maple tree and as he looked up he saw the 
branches were all brown and bare and the lovely 
green leaves were all gone. 

““Oh, dear!”’ he said to himself, “the big 
maple tree is dead, too.” ; . 
But he heard again the soft voice of the wind 
as it said, “It shall live again, it shall live 

again.” 

But the caterpillar did not understand, and he 
felt very sad as he began to spin his silken ham- 
mock. 

“They are dead,” he kept saying to himself, 
and every time he said it, he heard the soft wind 
answer, ‘‘ They shall live again, they shall live 
again.” 

But the caterpillar did not understand and he 
was sad. 

Soon the hammock was all done and the 
caterpillar was ready for his long nap. He did 
not hear the two children who came and looked 
at the hammock and said to each other, ‘ The 
caterpillar is dead, too,’”’ but the wind heard them 
and answered softly, though they did not under- 


162 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


stand, “‘ He shall live again, he shall live again. 
Wait and see.” 

The cold wind and snow came and stayed all 
winter, the birds were all away in the southland, 
and the wind no longer whispered in a soft voice, 
but whistled shrilly through the trees and shook 
the branches roughly. 

By and by the sun grew warm and bright and 
the snow melted away and spring came to all 
the earth. The little seeds began to grow in 
the warm earth and soon everything was a lovely 
green again. Something began to happen in 
the silken hammock where the caterpillar went 
to sleep. Slowly it came open and something 
moved inside. 

The soft wind saw it and said, “‘ The cater- 
pillar is alive again.” And then out of the 
silken hammock came a queer wet thing, not at 
all like the brown caterpillar. The sun shone 
warmly upon it, and soon it was resting there 
on the trunk of the big maple tree, a great beauti- 
ful butterfly, with wings of black and gold. 

The butterfly did not understand, and he said 
to the robin who looked down at him from the 
branch above, ‘‘ I thought I was a caterpillar.” 

But the robin answered as before in a little 
song, “‘ Now you are living again.”’ 

Then Mr. Caterpillar Butterfly thought of his 
friends, the lovely white daisy, the friendly green 
grass and the big maple tree, and he remembered 
the soft voice that said, “‘ They shall live again.”’ 
He looked around him and there they were, every 
one of them, more beautiful than ever in the 
warm sunlight. 

He did not understand, nobody understands; 
but we know the soft voices were true when they 
said, ‘“‘ They shall live again, they shall live 
again.”’ — Charlotte Brown. Used by permission 
of the Christian Board of Publication. 


Wuat THE GrusB Founp Out 


“Where does the Frog go .when he leaves 
this world? Tell me, somebody!”’ asked a little 
Dragon-fly grub as he flitted about the bottom 
of the pond. But his friends paid little attention 
to him as they caught the insects close about 
them. 

‘Who cares where the Frog goes ?”’ answered 
one of them. 

‘Who knows that the Frog goes anywhere? ” 
asked another. 

‘“ But I followed him just now,” said the Grub, 


‘‘ and he swam out to the edge of the water among 
the rushes and suddenly he was gone. I could 
find him nowhere. Did he leave this world, 
do you think, and what can there be beyond? ” 

“ You idle, talkative fellow!’ said one of his 
friends. “See the morsel you have missed,” 
and with that he snapped up an insect which 
was flitting right in front of the little Grub. 

This checked the Grub for a while, but he 
soon began asking the question again. The 
minnows took it up and asked every one that 
they met. ‘‘ Where does the Frog go when 
he leaves this world? Is there anything be- 
yond? ”’ But no one answered the questions. 

Suddenly, splish-splash, and there in their 
midst was the Frog himself. 

‘There is your chance,” whispered a minnow. 
‘“ Ask the Frog if you want to know.” 

Now the advice was very good indeed, but the 
Frog was a dignified fellow and every one stood 
quite in awe of him. But after two or three 
turns around the stem of a water lily, the Grub 
screwed up his courage and approached the Frog 
in as humble a manner as he could. 

“ Respected Frog, may I ask you a question? ” 
said the Grub. 

‘Ask away,” replied the Frog, not in a very 
encouraging tone. 

“What is there beyond this world?” eagerly 
asked the Grub. 

“What world do you mean)” said the Frog, 
rolling his goggle eyes around and around. 

‘This world, our world,’ answered the Grub. 

‘* You mean this pond?” sneered the Frog. 

““T mean, the place we live in, whatever you 
call it.” cried the Grub pertly. “TI call it the 
world.” 

‘““Oh, you do,” said the Frog, and he shook 
his sides with merriment. 

“Well, this is a pond, not the world. What 
do you call what’s beyond this pond? ” 

“That’s just what I want you to tell me,” 
answered the Grub eagerly. 

“You do, do you)” said the Frog. ‘ Well, 
you are an inquisitive fellow. But I will tell 
you. It is dry land.” 

There was a pause of a few seconds, and then 
the Grub said, ‘‘ Can one swim around there? ” 

“T should think not,” chuckled the Frog. 
“Dry land is not water.” 

“But I want you to tell me what it is,” per- 
sisted the Grub. 


? 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


You are troublesome,” said the Frog. “‘ Dry 
land is very much like the bottom of this pond, 
only it is dry, I tell you; there is no water there.” 

‘“ But what is there?” continued the Grub. 

“ Well,” said the Frog slowly, “‘ there’s some- 
thing there, and they call it air, but I don’t know 
how to explain it. It’s the nearest to nothing 
that I can think of.” 

“Tm afraid I don’t understand,” slowly 
replied the Grub. 

“Just as I expected,” answered the Frog. 
“ Now take my advice and ask no more silly 
questions.” 

“But I cannot be happy unless I know,” 
said the Grub. “If there is a world beyond 
this one, what is it? ”’ 

“ You are very foolish,” said the Frog, “ but 
I admire your spirit, and I will make an offer. 
Fasten yourself on my back, and I will take you 
to the other world.” 

“ Oh, thank you, thank you!” cried the Grub. 

“ We might as well start at once,” said the Frog, 
and with that the Grub fastened himself securely 
on the Frog’s back. The Frog swam away 
slowly upward and outward to the edge of the 
pond. ‘ Now hold fast,’”’ cried the Frog, and 
that moment the Grub’s head came above the 
water. It seemed to him that something struck 
him in the face and sent him reeling, splashing 
and gasping for breath to the bottom of the pond. 

“Oh, horrible!’ cried the Grub. ‘“‘ There is 
nothing but death beyond this world. The 
Frog has deceived me.” 

Late that day when the Grub was looking for 
food, he suddenly came upon the Frog seated 
on a stone at the bottom of the pond. 

“What, you here?” cried the startled Grub. 


“Then you never left this world at all. You 
deceived me.” 
‘ Deceived you? ” answered the Frog. ‘“‘ Why 


didn’t you hold on when I told you to? How 
do you think I felt when I looked about and found 
that you were not with me? Do you think that 
you were very polite? ”’ 

Then the Grub told him his experience; how 
something had struck him in the face, and he 
was sure that there was nothing but horrible 
death beyond. The Frog was silent for a few 
moments, then slowly shaking his head, he said, 
“You cannot understand now, but some time 
you will understand.” 

It was a few days after this that one of the 


163 


little Grubs fell sick. His friends gathered about 
him hoping they could do something for him, 
but he was languid and weak. The insects 
flitted past him and he did not so much as try 
to catch them. Slowly he swam away upward 
and outward to the edge of the pond. His 
friends followed him closely. Presently he caught 
hold of the stem of a rush and climbed upward, 
then suddenly, instantly, he disappeared from 
sight. Where had he gone? What now had 
happened to him? Would he ever come back? 
The Grubs did not know that their eyes, suited 
for sight in the water, were blind to all that was 
beyond. They waited a long time but they never 
saw the little Grub again. A few days later 
another Grub fell ill. They gathered about him 
and said, ‘“‘ Promise us, if you go away from us 
that you will come back and tell us what you 
find.” 

“T promise,” was the weak answer, and he too 
swam away to the edge of the pond. His friends 
followed him closely. Catching hold of the stem 
of a rush he climbed up and suddenly disappeared 
from their sight. But they waited, for he was 
coming back. He had promised them that he 
would. But they waited in vain, for he never 
came back. 

*“ He is faithless,” cried one. 

“He has forgotten us,” said another, while 
others replied sneeringly, ‘‘ There is no world 
but this one.” 

But our little Grub remembered that the Frog 
had said, “‘ Some day you will understand.” 

And so it came about, when this little Grub 
himself became sick and uneasy one day, he 
went to his friends and said, “‘ Something within 
me tells me that I cannot stay longer in the 
water. I must leave you. Something within 
me tells me to go upward.” 

Then they said to him, ‘‘ Will you promise to 
come back to us again? Will you forget us if 
you find another world? ” 

“If it is possible,” said the little Grub, “I 
will come back to you and tell you what I have 
found. Till then farewell.” And surrounded 
by his friends he swam upward and outward 
to the edge of the pond and catching hold of the 
stem of a water-lily he slowly climbed until 
suddenly he emerged beyond the water. 

The dazzling light blinded him, but he held 
tightly to the stem. Then a strange thing 
happened. His eyes changed and he could see 


164 


the world of sunlight around him. Then a more 
wonderful thing happened; the skin broke down 
his back, and slowly, after many struggles, he 
slipped out of it entirely. And then, wonder of 
wonders, he found he had wings which stretched 
out to the sunlight and glistened as with fire. 
He poised himself in the air and floated away. 
He had left his old Grub clothes behind. He 
was now a beautiful Dragon-fly. 

He did not forget the promise he had made or 
the dear ones he had left behind, but whenever 
he tried to go to them, he found that it was as 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


impossible for him to enter the water as it had 
been for him to come into the air when he lived 
in the water. One day when he was skimming 


low over the surface of the water in the hope _ 
that he might see some of his loved ones, he met . 


again his old-time friend the Frog who said to 
him, ‘‘ My friend, you cannot go to them, but 
they can come to you, and then they will under- 
stand.” Adapted from ‘“‘ Parables from Nature,” 
by Margaret Gatty, by Susan Mendenhall. Used 
by permission of ‘‘ Everyland.” 


Sue 


, 


TWENTY-NINTH SUNDAY 
April [Easter Sunday] 


DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 


(It is suggested that this program, like last 
Sunday’s, be divided into two periods only, the 
first half for department worship or special 
service, the last for a single class period. 

(An appropriate song, — especially appro- 
priate if Easter plants are presented to the 
children —is “‘ God is Love” from Songs for 
Little People. The following poem may be read:) 


Tuere Was a Kina In NAZARETH 


There was a king in Nazareth, 
(Men did not know he was a king) 
By humble ways he went about, 
With love for everything. 


He had no crown, but he was kind, 
He had no throne, but he was strong, 

Good deeds he did, and loving words 
He said, the whole day long. 


He was a king and went again 
Unto his kingdom, but he still 

Is staying in cur hearts, and we 
Can serve him if we will. 


By gentle thoughts and loving words 
And deeds of kindness day by day 
Our feet can follow where he went 
Along the lowly way. 
— Nancy Byrd Turner. 


CLASS PERIOD 


Picture. (Show the picture, “ Peter and John 
hastening to the Sepulcher on the Morning of 
the Resurrection,” Wilde’s Bible Picture, 538. 
If possible have one for each child. Tell the 
story of the picture, and afterwards let the 
children paste it in their books and print on the 
opposite page the verse, “He is risen,” or, 
‘“* Behold, [ am alive for evermore.’’) 


Story. 
Tue Easter STORY 
(This story follows Goodspeed’s translation, 
John 20 : 1-29.) 
This is a picture of the way one artist thought 


165 


Jesus’ two most loved disciples must have looked 
on Easter morning. 


School A. John: What makes them look so 
scared? 


What do you suppose they are thinking as 
they hurry along? I think I know why he made 
them look like that. 

You see Jesus had been laid in a tomb, or 
sepulcher, out in the rocks in a lovely garden. 
Women who loved him had seen the tomb and 
knew his body had been put there. They saw 
a great stone rolled in front of the opening of 
the tomb. Sadly they went to their homes, 
and prepared spices and perfumes to anoint him 
as a last loving service. The disciples were 
mourning in Jerusalem. They thought, you 
remember, that they had lost their teacher 
forever. They could not be comforted, and 
could think of nothing else. 

Very early on Sunday morning — the sun bad 
hardly risen — the women went to the garden 
with the spices which they had prepared. They 
wanted to go into the tomb, and they wondered 
how they could ever roll away the great stone 
at the door. But they need not have wondered, 
for to their amazement as they came near, they 
saw that the stone was already rolled away. 
More than that, — the tomb itself was empty! 

Mary, one of the women, hurried to tell the 
disciples, and this is a picture of Peter and John 
as they hastened to the tomb to see for themselves. 

Who had rolled the stone away? Had some 
one taken away their Lord? Why was the tomb 
empty? Could it be that Jesus still lived? 
Peter especially wished that it might be so. He 
wanted to tell him that he was sorry for some- 
thing he had done just before Jesus was crucified. 
See how anxious he looks! 

All that day stories kept coming to the dis- 
ciples which at first they couldn’t believe, and 
at last which they couldn’t help believmg. ‘The 
stories were about Jesus’ appearing to different 
ones, talking with them, comforting them. 

There was Mary’s story. She had been crymg 
near the empty tomb. “They have taken my 
Master away,” she said, “and I do not know 
where they have laid him!” She turned around 
and through her tears she saw some one standing 


166 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


there. She thought it was the gardener. He 
spoke to her. 

“Why are you weeping? ”’ he asked. 
are you looking for? ” 

“Oh,” said Mary, “if it was you, sir, that 
carried him away, tell me where you have put 
him and I will take him away!” Then she 
heard her name spoken, “ Mary!”’ 

The voice was not the gardener’s. She turned 
and saw Jesus. Her tears were gone now. 

“'Teacher!’’ said Mary joyfully. Oh, how 
happy she was as she hurried to tell the disciples! 

‘““T have seen the Master!’ she cried as she 
came in upon them, where they were sorrowing 
together. 

Later Peter had returned to them with the 
same words, ““I have seen the Master!” and 
~ his face had lost a little of the anxious look. It 
was wondering instead. 

They were all sitting together, talking and 
wondering, when two other friends of Jesus 
knocked at the door. One was named Cleopas. 
These two men had been with the disciples 
earlier in the day, but had left to walk to their 
home in Emmaus. Now as the disciples opened 
the door for them and saw who it was, they 
announced, ‘‘ The Lord is risen indeed; Simon 
has seen him!” 

“We have seen him too,” they declared. 
‘“* We came back to tell you about it. We were 
walking toward Emmaus and talking of all that 
had happened when a stranger joined us. 

“*What is it you are discussing with each 
other on your way?’ he asked. 

‘““ We were surprised that any one should ask, 
when he saw our sadness, and we said, ‘ Are you 
the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know 
what has happened there lately? ’ 

‘** What is it?’ he asked, — and we told him 
about Jesus of Nazareth, the wonderful prophet, 
how we were hoping he would save our nation 
but how the high priests and leading men had 
crucified him. We told him that all this had 
happened three days ago, and that this morning 
some women of our number had gone to his 
tomb and could not find his body, but came back 
insisting that they had seen a vision and that 
he was alive.” 

The two men were excited and the others were 
eager to hear. They went on and told how this 
stranger had walked with them as far as their 
village, talking with them all the way, explaining 


“Whom 


things that had never been understood before; 
things that had been written years before about 
the Son of God who must come to the world and 
suffer and die before he was again to be with his 
Father. 
him. When they reached their village, he acted 
as though he were going on, but they urged him 
not to. 

“Stay with us,” they said, “for it is getting 
toward evening and the day is nearly over.” 

So he went in to stay with them. And when 
he took his place with them at the table, he took 
the bread and blessed it and broke it in pieces 
and handed it to them. It was then that their 
eyes were opened and they knew him. It was 
Jesus! 

He went away from them then, and they had 
hurried back to Jerusalem to tell the others. 

Here was another proof that their Teacher 
still lived. The disciples were slowly coming 
to believe it. 

Even as Jesus’ friends were talking together, 
thinking about their Teacher and longing for 
him — suddenly he was there! The door was 
locked. No one had seen him come in. But 
every one of his friends was sure of it. 

Those who hated him never saw him after he 
had died. He came only to his friends. These 
enemies of his might have passed close to his 
friends who were feeling him near, and never 
imagine that he was with them. 


School A. 
Joun: I wish J could see him. 
FRANKIE: Why can’t people see him 
now? 


I do not understand it. Neither did his 
friends. But of this they were sure — their 
Teacher was alive and was often with them. 
They told of it over and over again, and then 
wrote the stories down so that everybody could 
be just as sure as they were that Jesus still lived. 

And they began at once to go on with the work 
that Jesus had left unfinished. He had taught 
them how. They were eager to teach the whole 
world about their heavenly Father, as Jesus had 
taught them. They wanted to show the whole 
world the difference between a kingdom of love 
and kingdoms of gold, or might, or pleasure. 
And they worked so hard that thousands in 
their lifetime came to know about Jesus and 
believe his teachings, and changed their way of 


But all this time they did not recognize | 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


living. And it is because of these first disciples 
that more and more people began to see that 
Jesus’ way is the best way, even to our own time. 
Down through all these hundreds of years God 
has been depending on his friends to tell the 
good news. Aren’t you glad that we have been 
told? And isn’t it wonderful to think that 
he’s depending on those who are wearing the 
flag of Christ to spread his kingdom of love! 


School A. Because of general program, 
reserved story for next Sunday. Followed 
it by Christian flag salute. 


Report of School B 


Departmental Easter Program 
Song. “ This is God’s House.” 
Talk. About Easter-time and all the things 
God has given back to us. 
Scripture. Mark 16:1-7. By third grade. 
Song. “ For, lo, the winter is past.” 
Pantomime. ‘“ What the Easter lily told the 
Bluebird.” By weekday third grade. 


Song. “Praise Him, praise Him.” 

Story. “The Garden of Joseph of Arimathea.”’ 

Scripture. “Consider the lilies, how they 
grow.” By one child. 

Response. 

Prayer. 

Offering. 

Response. 

Song. “I Think when I Read that Sweet 
Story of Old.” 


Report of School A 


Easter Program with Entire School 
(Outlined in Twenty-eighth Sunday. 
ing is the story of Jesus by third grade.) 
Joun: Jesus was promised to Mary. 

Sruart: He was born at Bethlehem and laid 
in a manger. 

LAWRENCE: Shepherds heard the song in the 
sky and went to worship him. 

Marion: Wise-men brought him presents. 

ANNE: When he was a boy he lived at Nazareth. 

Frankie: When he was twelve he went to 
Jerusalem for a celebration. 

His parents lost him and found him after 
three days asking questions of the doctors in the 
temple. 


Follow- 


167 


Exinor: He grew into a man that helped 
everybody. 

Tommy: He chose twelve disciples to be his 
pupils, for he came to teach a new way of living. 

Betty: He taught them to pray. Sometimes 
the disciples didn’t know where he was, and when 
they hunted for him they would find him praying. 
That is the way he showed them how to keep 
close to their heavenly Father. 

FLorrig: When some one asked him what it 
meant to be a good neighbor, he told them the 
story of the Good Samaritan. 

Harry: He loved children, and said he wanted 
them to come to him. 

Tina: He made a blind man see. 

Karu: He healed the sick. 

Joun: He made a boy’s lunch enough for five 
thousand people. 

SruarT: Once there was a man named 
Zaccheeus who cheated people. He was so short 
he had to climb a tree to see Jesus. Jesus made 
him sorry that he was dishonest, and made him 
want to pay back all and more than he had stolen. 

Lawrence: The only time we know about 
Jesus’ being angry was when he saw the poor 
people cheated in his Father’s house. 

Marion: When his disciples quarreled about 
who would be greatest in his kingdom, Jesus 
washed their feet and made them see that to be 
great meant to serve others. 

ANNE: The people that loved him wanted to 
make him king. When he rode into Jerusalem 
they went before him scattering palm branches. 

FRANKIE: The wicked people did not like him. 
They had him put to death. They thought by 
killing him that they could get rid of him forever. 

Exinor: His friends were terribly unhappy 
when he died. They thought they should never 
see him again. 

Tommy: But he came back to them. The 
real Jesus was not dead; he was alive. 

Berry: He showed them that no one really 
dies; we live again. 

Fiorrie: When his disciples knew this was 
true they couldn’t wait to tell others. It made 
the whole world seem different when they found 
that they had not lost their leader. 

Tuva: It is because the disciples told the good 
news everywhere that we know it now. 

ANNE: Easier is the day we celebrate Christ’s 
living again. He said, 

Aut: ‘ Behold, I am alive for evermore,” 


168 


Before and After Program 

Leader marshaled third grade into kitchen 
before going into other room. ‘‘ Remember,” 
she said, “we are trying to tell the others the 
story of our great Teacher. Dear heavenly 
Father, help us to do this in such a way that the 
people who hear will love Jesus better, just as 
we tried in the Christmas service to lead them 
to the manger to worship. For his sake, Amen.” 
They followed the others quietly and went 
through the program beautifully. Reaction came 
when they returned to their own room, and it 
was decided not to have classes, but distribute 
the plants at once and dismiss children. Confu- 
sion followed. 

Leaver: Boys, the Sunday school is still going 
on in the other room! (Boys giggled.) 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Sruart: I didn’t start it. 

Joun: I did, Miss Bradley. 

Leader spoke of plants which were to be given 
to them. Exclamations of joy. 

Leaver: Doesn’t it strike you that the church 
is doing a great deal for you this year? 

Sruart: Yes, it’s doing a good deal more for 
us than we are for it! 

Leader gave out Christian flag buttons to 
class’ delight, after serious talk, to which no one 
paid the slightest attention. 

Another Side of Florrie 

Frorrie (who had left yesterday's class in a 
huff, putting her arm around leader): Miss Bradley, 
I’m sorry I left the class yesterday the way I did! 
(This from Florrie whose only idea a few weeks 
ago had been to ‘‘ make you unhappy.’’) 


TWENTY-NINTH WEEKDAY 
Work and Stories 


Possibilities 

Plan or practise songs for next Sunday’s wor- 
ship service. 

Continue work on the project. 
tions in Thirtieth Weekday.) 

Finish the Easter page in the books. 

Tell appropriate stories. 

In School A the mothers reported that the 
children had lost the impetus received around 
Christmas time to make the “Happy New 
Year”’’ wish continue throughout the year. 
They were careless and untidy and not so keen 
to help. Before this new ways of making old 
tasks attractive should have been devised. A 
good story to use at any time is “ The Little 
Girl who Played All the Time,” or “ In the Path 
of the Tornado.” These stories can be taken 
out of the wise man’s pack. They appear at 
the end of this program. 

Comments of the children and leader on the 
picture of Peter and John may easily lead to one 
of these stories. Thus: “ They’re hurrying to 
see if the tomb is empty; they want to see for 
themselves; they don’t know what they’re going 
to do without Jesus; their work isn’t interesting 
any more; it was interesting while they were 
working with him; then they found that they 
could still work with him, even if he had gone 
to his Father. There was still a great deal to do 
before his kingdom could come on earth; they 
could help it come; they could show others how 
to make it come; sometimes it was by being 
brave in some hard trial; sometimes it was just 
by doing the little everyday things cheerfully, 
and always being ready to help; sometimes it’s 
hardest to keep doing your everyday work 
cheerfully and happily. There’s a story about 
a girl who found a way to make everyday tasks 
interesting. 


(See sugges- 


Report of School A 

Spring Hike 

Took a hike. Fred Towne, the older boy 
who had promised to take the boys fishing, did 
not appear. Stuart had brought fishpole. Made 
us miserable as possible with his grumbling. 

Sruart: Made me bring this old pole all this 
way and now you won’t iet me use it. No, 
nobody can carry it for me, think I’m going to 


let any one carry my twenty-five dollar fishpole? 
Darned old fishpole keeps catching in the 
branches. The next time you write me a letter 
and say that Fred Towne’s coming with us, I 


don’t take no stock in that letter. Making a 
fellow bring his fishpole —— ”’ 
LeapER (in exasperation): Stuart! Did I 


make you bring that fishpole? 

Sruart (later): If I go anywhere with my 
fishpole and don’t bring home any fish, my 
father calls me a big boob and laughs at me. 
And my mother laughs with him. 

Leader heard him calling somebody names. 
She gave him a look. 

Stuart: I guess I don’t feel very good today. 

Stuart’s remark apparently described a uni- 
versal condition. The distracted leader 
struggled like a sheep dog with an unruly flock. 
Sixteen children scattering in sixteen directions 
endangered life and limb in sixteen separate ways. 
They did gather bloodroot and hepaticas to 
send to Virginia, but the leader drew her first 
long breath only when a story, “In the Path of 
the Tornado,” drew them together and they 
perched in trees and on stones to listen. A 
frank discussion of their behavior followed. 

Joun: If I’ve been naughty today, don’t 
tell my mother or I can never go on another 
hike. (Uncertainly) Have I been good, Miss 
Bradley? 

LeapER: Don’t you know, yourself, John? 

Joun: No, have I? You've got to tell me 
because my mother’ll ask me when I get home, 
and I'll get a licking if I haven't ! 

Cuitp: I’ve tried to use my self-control today. 

AnoTHER: I’ve tried to use mine, too. 

AworHer: Anne and Harriet have been the 
best. 

Boys: No, there’s more’n that. John and 
Douglas were all right (wisely omitling mention 
of themselves). 

Leaver: Still, I think we'll omit next week’s 
hike. 

CHILDREN: Aw! 

Stories 
Tue Lirrte Girt wHo Piayep ALL THE TIME 


The Visitor and Sue Frances sat on the pleasant, 
shady piazza, eating cookies. Between bites 


169 


170 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


they took long, straggly stitches in Lady Claire’s 
sleeves. They thought they were making Lady 
Claire a dress. Since the Visitor’s arrival they 
had played croquet and ball, go-a-visiting and 
school, travel and  guess-what’s-in-my-mind. 
They were really quite tired out playing. 

“Who's that striped little girl ’cross there, 
wheeling a baby carriage without any hat on?” 
inquired the Visitor. 

Sue Frances took another bite and answered, 
“ Oh, that’s the Little Girl That Never Plays. 
She’s always wheeling or sweeping or doing 
something; she never plays.” 

“Never plays! Sue Frances Treworthy!” 

“Well, honest, she never. I guess you'd 
pity her if you lived on the opposite side of her! 
It makes me ache.” 

The Visitor got up rather suddenly. “I 
guess I'll take Lady Claire to walk,” she said; 
“she needs a constitution.” 

But it was not of Lady Claire’s health she 
was thinking; she wanted to go a little nearer 
to the Girl That Never Played and see how she 
looked. 

Across the street the baby carriage came to a 
stop as the Visitor approached. The Little 
Girl That Never Played was smiling! She 
looked just like other little girls! 

“How'd you do?” she nodded. 

‘““No, thank you —I mean I’m pretty well, 
thank you,’ murmured the Visitor, in some 
confusion. “ You don’t look a bit different!” 
she added honestly. 

‘** Me) — diff’rent? ” in wonder. 

““T mean because you don’t ever play. I 
s’posed you'd look ” — 

“Don’t ever play — me! 
the time! ”’ 

“Oh! ”’ stammered the Visitor, “oh, I hope 
you'll beg my pardon! I thought Sue Frances 
said you swept and — and worked.” 

“Why, I do, but I play all the time ’'m doing 
it. I always take the baby out like this; what 
do you suppose I play then? I was playing it 
when you came ‘cross the street. You can’t 
ever guess, so I’ll tell you. I was playing Body 
Guard.” 

The Visitor’s eyes opened wide. 

“Yes,” laughed the other. “I’m the Body 


Why, I play all 


Guard, you know. The baby’s the Czar and he 
can’t go out alone for fear of being bombed and 
things. I have to stay right with him every 
minute to Body Guard him.” 

“Then when I feed him I have to taste every- 
thing first to be sure it won’t poison him — 
that’s the way they do with a regular Czar, you 
know. I take little bites, and when it doesn’t 
poison me dead I give it to the ba — the Czar, 
I mean. It’s lots of fun to play that!” 

The Visitor’s eyes were getting very wide 
open indeed. She had never “ played”’ Body 
Guard the baby. Suddenly she remembered a 
kind of work you couldn’t play. 

‘“ There’s washing the dishes,” she said trium- 
phantly. And as sure as you live the other 
little girl nodded with glee! 

‘Oh, yes, that’s splendid play!” she laughed. 
‘““T play that three times a day. Shipwreck, I 
call it.” 

‘“ Shipwreck? ” the Visitor gasped. 

“Yes, the dishes tumble into the boiling sea, 
waves always are soap-sudsy on the tips, you 
know. I play a great ship has been wrecked 
and I’m the Life Saving Stationer, saving the 
folks. The nice white dishes are the first-cabin 
passengers, and the cracked and nicked ones are 
the second-cabins, and the pans and pots the 
steerages. The saucers are the boys and the 
cups the girls and the butter-plates the little 
babies. It’s the greatest play, that is!”’ 

The Visitor went back to Sue Frances with a 
thoughtful face. 

She had quite forgotten Lady Claire, who 
dangled ignominiously by one leg. 


’ 


Sue Frances was playing tea party; she had 
tea all ready. ‘‘ Well,” she said, looking up 
from the little gold-and-white teapot, “ don’t 
you pity her dreadfully — that poor little girl 
’cross there that you’ve been talking to? Think 
of never play —” 

“She plays all the time,’ the Visitor said 
quietly. ‘I know, ’cause she said so. She has 
the splendidest times sweeping and taking care 
o the baby and — you guess what else, Sue 
Frances Treworthy! But you can’t, if you keep 
right on guessing till the tip end of forever. She 
makes a perfectly splendid play out of washing 
the dishes!” — Annie Hamilton Donnell. Used 
by permission of The Congregationalist. Condensed. 


ltt iecacaattatil  i te 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


In THE Patu oF THE TORNADO 


It was a beautiful spring morning, but a tor- 
nado was approaching, and uothing is beautiful 
after a tornado has touched it. 

Did you ever hear of that queer, terrific gust 
of wind that rushes past so fast nobody can tell 
how many miles an hour it travels? It strikes 
a town or a prairie, speeding through it or across 
it, sweeping everything before it, and leaving 
nothing but destruction in its trail. It all 
happens in a minute, but it undoes the work of 
years. In the tornado’s tracks are trees torn 
up from their roots, houses lifted in the air and 
shattered to pieces, great buildings split apart. 

As I said in the beginning, it was a beautiful 
spring morning, but a tornado was approaching. 

It jumped out of bed, jumped out of its night- 
clothes, left them in the middle of the floor, and 
started to dress. Its other name was Harry. 
His eye fell on the book-case in the corner. 
Quick as a flash he was across the room, pulling 
out one book after another to find the one he 
wanted. Once it was found he settled himself 
on the floor to read as he put on his shoes and 
stockings. 


School A. Cut~pren: I’ve done that. 


I do it, too. 


Something he saw made him think of his 
electric engine which hadn’t run very well the 
night before. Jumping up he ran into his 
mother’s sewing-room and laid out his track. 
He quickly unscrewed the electric bulb over his 
mother’s sewing-machine, and attached the cord 
to his transformer. Before he had found out 
what was the matter he heard his mother’s 
voice: “Harry, are you ready for breakfast? ”’ 

Harry wasn’t. He rushed into the bathroom. 
Handling his engine and tracks had seemed to 
get his hands very dirty. He took a piece of 
clean white soap into his grimy hands and held 
them under the faucet. Dirty drops spattered 
over the once spotless wash-stand. 


School A. Joun: When I do that my 
mother makes me clean it up. 


The soap, now stained and streaked and 
dripping dirty water, was thrust back into 
its holder, and a clean towel seized _ to 
wipe away what soil remained on his hands. 

After the tornado had gone to school, his 
mother went to his room to make his bed. She 


171 


looked about. The bed was torn to pieces. 
Some pajama trousers were in the middle of the 
floor, just as some one had stepped out of them. 
The coat was flung among the tumbled bed- 
clothes. Books were lying around the book- 
case, and one was still open on the floor in the 
center of the room. She sighed. “ Harry’s 
tracks,”’ she thought. 

She thought it again when she stepped into 
her sewing-room. 

‘“Harry’s been here,” she said, and “ Harry 
again,” when she saw the bathroom. She shut 
the door on the sewing-room and bedroom, but 
cleaned the bathroom. 


ok * * 


It was a beautiful spring day, as we said before, 
but a tornado was approaching. The sun had 
been out all day. The ground was wet and 
muddy. This tornado wore rubbers, but he was 
hungry, so he didn’t stop to take them off. He 
threw open the door into a happy looking living- 
room. He flung his books on one chair, his coat 
on another. Straight through to the kitchen he 
tracked his muddy steps. Into the cooky-jar 
went a hand, coming out full. Back through 
the dining-room and living-room tracked the 
tornado, now dropping crumbs all the way. 
In the living-room he opened the paper on the 
table, letting fall the pages he did not want. 
When he had looked at Mutt and Jeff he stopped 
to consider. Should he take out his roller skates 
or his pogum stick? 

He would take his pogum stick down the 
street to his chum’s. The roller skates were 
left on the floor. He ran out of the door, not 
bothering to close it. 

Up the steps came a caller. She rang the bell 
and looked into the room which somebody had 
spent some hours in making beautiful and clean. 
This is what she saw — a muddy rug; a roller 
skate under the table, a second in the middle of 
the floor; a pile of books on one chair, a coat on 
another; newspapers scattered over a table and 
the floor; cooky crumbs everywhere; tracks of 
mud and crumbs leading into the next room. 

And the caller thought, “ Harry’s been here.” 

Just before supper Harry came in. His 
rubbers were again covered with mud, but he 
did not take them off. He stumbled over a 
roller skate, but he did not pick it up. 

“ Harry, wash your hands,” his mother called 


172 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


from the kitchen, “your father is just coming 
up the street.” 

“TH’m, I see Harry’s passed through,” he 
heard his father remark. 

“What does he mean?” thought Harry. 

Up the stairs came the tornado’s father. As 
he reached the bathroom the tornado heard him 
say grimly, “He has also been here, I see.” 
Harry was curious. How did his father know 
just where he had been? 

‘How do you know, dad?” he called to his 
father. . 

“You leave your tracks,” answered his father. 
“You might step in here and look around, if 
you don’t believe it.” 

Harry returned to the bathroom. 

“Did you ever happen to see the soap look 
like that, or the wash-stand look like that, or a 
towel look like that, after your mother or I had 
used them?” he asked, pointing to the dirty 
tracks. Harry looked. It was pretty bad. 

“How did you know I’d been downstairs, 
though?” he asked as he started to scrub away 
the dirty spots. 

“ Harry,” said his father, ‘‘ I don’t believe you 
know you leave tracks. All right. Let’s make 
a tour of the house. We'll visit each room and 
hunt for tracks. We'll begin upstairs.” 

Harry started toward his bedroom. 

“Why — why,” he stammered. He had ex- 
pected to see it in perfect order. It usually was 
when he came home from school. 

“Ah, yes, your tracks again,’ observed his 
father. The pajama trousers were still in a heap 
on the floor, the coat mixed up with the bed- 
clothes. The books were still scattered about, 
the bed was as he had tumbled out of it. 

“Tt generally Jooks better’n this,’ Harry 
apologized. 

“You mean you generally see your mother’s 
tracks when you come home,” suggested his 
father. “Are any of these your mother’s 
tracks? ” 

“No,” admitted Harry as his father went 
into the next room, which also was usually in 
order when Harry came from school Today it 
had not been touched since Harry himself had 
played with his train. His father tripped over a 
wire, and when he tried to turn on the light, 
found the globe gone. “‘ Your tracks or your 
mother’s?” asked his father. “ Let’s go down- 
stairs.” 


You know what they found in the living-room 
—roller skates, papers, books, coat, mud, 
crumbs. Harry had never realized before just 
how much his tracks meant. No wonder people 
could tell when he had passed through a room. 
He was not proud of his tracks. He was ashamed. 

‘““T thought you didn’t know, son,” said his 
father. ‘‘ Look here; try another kind of tracks 
and see how you like them.” 

Have you ever run a vacuum cleaner over a 
rug and seen the bright, clean path it leaves? 
Harry had never done it before. He liked it. 
It was fun to leave beauty wherever he went 
instead of ugliness. He became more and more 
interested, and by the time he went to bed you 
never would have said of the rooms he had been 
in, ‘‘ Harry’s been here.” 

He had hung up his clothes, put away his 
books and toys, folded up the newspaper. He 
had returned the light to its socket, scrubbed 
the soap and washstand clean, and removed the 
mud and crumbs from the carpets with that 
magic vacuum cleaner. His tracks now looked 
like his father’s or mother’s. 

‘“'That’s just the trouble,” he said to himself. 
“ After this my tracks’ll look just like mom’s or 
dad’s. How’ll they know I’ve been anywhere if 
I clean up after myself? I want ’em to be able 
to say, ‘ Harry’s béen here’ just the same, only 
I want ’em to say it about a clean room instead 
of a dirty one! ” 

Do you want to know what he did? He 
found some wooden button molds in his mother’s 
work-basket, and some meat skewers in the 
kitchen. 
to fit the holes of the button-molds. (And he 
swept up the whittlings.) Then he carved a 
little groove in the top of each skewer, wrote on 
a card HARRY’S TRACKS, and placed the 
cards in the grooves. The next time his mother 
went into the bathroom she found the soap as 
clean as she had left it. The wash-bowl was 
spotless, Harry’s towel was folded as neatly as 
the rest. But on the shelf over the wash-bowl 
stood a little card on a standard. His mother 
rubbed her eyes as she read, HARRY’S TRACKS. 
Harry had been there, washed his hands, and 
except for the message no one would know it! 

When she went to his room in the morning to 
make his bed, his night clothes were hung away 
in his closet, nothing littered the floor. But on 
the stand by his bed stood a little silent reminder. 


He whittled down four meat skewers ~ 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


HARRY’S TRACKS she read again, and 
pinched herself to see if she was dreaming. If 
it hadn’t been for a sign in the sewing-room 
proclaiming the same thing, she would never 
have known that he had been playing there 
with his electric engine. 
_ And downstairs, when he remembered to take 
off his rubbers and to put his things in the proper 
places, he always remembered, too, to place his 
little message in plain sight. Callers coming in 
and seeing it would ask what it meant. 

“Tt means that Harry has been here,” his 
mother would explain after she grew used to it, 
and the callers would go away wondering. They 
could remember when rooms which Harry had 
passed through had looked quite different! 


173 


But Harry had such a good time playing this 
game which he had invented himself that he 
kept it up. 

It was fun, after you had gotten a room into 
disorder to straighten it out again and then 
leave in plain sight a messenger which said, 
HARRY’S TRACKS. But it was even more 
fun to hear your mother or father say, on entering 
such a room, “I see that Harry has been here!” 
In fact, he liked it so much that he grew com- 
pletely out of his disorderly habits and his tracks 
looked more like those of a vacuum cleaner than 
those of a tornado, so that if I were writing this 
story over again I should have to call it, “In 
the Path of the Vacuum Cleaner.” 


THIRTIETH SUNDAY 
April 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Spring songs, prayer, offering, as planned by the 
children.) 


What School A Did 
(One Departmental Period) 
Scripture Reading. Psalm 95 (by children 
who brought Bibles). 
Song. “ Godis Love,” illustrated by hepaticas 
from hike. 
Spring Bible Verses. 


By boys. 


Song. “For lo, the winter is past.” 

Birthday Service. 

Offering. 

Prayer. (Composed by children, with original 
response.) : 

Song. ‘Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.” 

Poem. “ There was a King of Nazareth.” 

Song. “I Cannot do Great Things.” 

Conversation. (About learning to be more 
Christ-like.) 

Song-Prayer. ‘Lord, Who Lovest Little 
Children.” 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


(Ask whether any new ideas have been thought 
of for making everyday tasks more interesting. 
See Twenty-ninth Weekday. 

(The story of Peter’s life, his repentance 
and forgiveness is given in two parts, to be told 
in the two class periods today. 

(It is appropriate just now not only for the 
timeliness of the resurrection message, but 
because we are trying to renew the impetus and 
redouble the efforts of the class toward Christian 
living. Since lying and discouragement in well- 
doing are both common problems of children, 
this story of one who loved the great Teacher, 
but failed him in a crisis, who was completely 
_ forgiven and trusted again and whose subsequent 
zeal for the right was a proof of his repentance, 
is entirely within their experience. 

(A point of contact may be easily found from 
the reports of the children on their attempts to 
be faithful to their home tasks and their dis- 
couragement; or their resolutions for — and 
failure in — self-control.) 


This is a story about one of Jesus’ best friends 
who did a terrible thing just after he had boasted 
that he was too strong to make such a mistake. 


Story. 
Peter’s Liz 


Once there were two fishermen who lived on 
the shores of a lake. They had four boys who 
were just as unlike as they could be. (Read 
or follow here the portrayals given by Rufus 
Jones in The Boy Jesus and His Companions, 
Chapter VIII. See Luke 22 :31-34; John 13: 
37, 38; 18: 15-18; 25-27; 21 : 1-17.) 

“Their mothers found out very soon that 
these boys were not made the same way. Each 
one had his own peculiar disposition, set and 
fixed. What pleased one did not always please 
the other. They all loved the lake, but they 
had different ways of showing their love for it 
and different ways of acting under all circum- 
stances. 

“John was from the very first the sweetest 
natured of the group. He was a lovely child, 
beautiful to look at, and always happy. His 
mother, who was named Salome, knew when he 
was a tiny baby that there ‘never was such:a 
child.” He didn’t cry except when something 
‘real’ was the matter. He smiled so beautifully 
that he seemed like a little cherub that had 
strayed away from heaven. 

‘Simon was quite the opposite. He cried over 
the least bit of trouble. He got angry and broke 
things. He passed from one scene of difficulty 
to another. All the accidents seemed to happen 
to him. Nobody ever called him a cherub. He 
meant well, but he was unlucky. He had a way 
of doing the wrong thing and of having even his 
good intentions turn out to be bad blunders. 
When he appeared a storm was expected to 
follow soon. Of course it was much easier to 
get on with John than it was to get on with Simon, 
who always wanted to play, but who was sure 
to make trouble before any game was over, 
because he always wanted to play the leading 
part. 

““ As time went on and the boys grew big and 
strong, the lake became almost the whole of 
their life. Everybody knew them and everybody 
learned to count upon them. When their boat 


174 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


put in to the shore, everybody expected to see 
a pretty catch of fish. The years as they passed 
improved Simon. He was still a strange youth, 
but there were fine traits in him. He was quick 
and rash, but he would often do brave and 
generous deeds. He seldom stopped to think. 
Ideas flashed into his mind and with a rush the 
thing was done. Sometimes it was right and 
sometimes it was wrong. If it turned out to 
be wrong he would be very sorry afterward and 
decide never to do such a thing again, but alas, 
another flash would come and he would rush 
once more into a foolish act. Many times as 
the boat neared the shore with its load of fish, 
Simon would suddenly drop his oar and leap 
into the water and swim like a fish alongside the 
boat. Simon promised each time he was scolded 
that he would not do it again. _But as soon as 
the impulse came over him he was pretty sure to 
‘forget’ and leap in once more, especially if 
there were people on the shore who would see 
him do it.” 

You have heard of Simon and John before. 
You know they were two of the four fishermen 
Jesus asked to be his disciples. But they hadn't 
been with him long before Jesus changed Simon’s 
name. He named him Peter, which means rock. 
A rock is strong, — something you can depend 
upon. Peter was proud of his name. He liked 
to think he was strong and could be depended 
upon. He used to boast of how strong he was. 

One night—it was the night of the Last 
Supper — he boasted of how much he loved Jesus. 
He said, ‘‘ Master, I am ready to go to prison 
and to death with you!’’ Jesus looked at Peter. 
He loved him, but he knew that he wasn’t as 
strong yet as he thought he was. He knew he 
would grow stronger all the time, for he was 
praying for Peter. But now he said, “ Peter, 
the cock will not crow before you deny three 
times that you know me!”’ 

It was only a short time after this that the 
soldiers came and seized Jesus to take him to 
the high priest. His friends scattered like 
frightened sheep, but Peter followed the pro- 
cession at a distance. He even went into the 
courtyard of the high priest, and there, shivering 
with cold and fear he sat down to wait, and to 
warm himself by the fire. Some of the men who 
had arrested Jesus were in the yard, and there 
was a great deal of talk about what had hap- 
pened. 


175 


Suddenly the firelight flickered over Peter’s 
face. A maid saw him and thought she recog- 
nized him as one of Jesus’ friends. 

“This man was with him too!’ she exclaimed, 
but Peter, frightened and hardly knowing what 
he said, denied it. 

“I do not know him,”’ he said. 

Shortly after a man saw him and said, “ You 
are one of them too!” But Peter said, “1 am 
not.” 

About an hour later another man insisted, 
“This man was certainly with him too, for he 
is a Galilean.” 

But Peter said, “‘I do not know what you 
mean.” 

And just as he spoke a cock crowed. And the 
Master turned and looked at Peter, and Peter 
remembered the words the Master had said to 
him, ‘“‘ Before the cock crows today you will 
disown me three times!” And he went outside 
and wept bitterly. 

Jesus was put to death a few hours afterward, 
and for two days his friends, who thought they 
had lost him, mourned. Peter could think of 
nothing else. If only he could see Jesus once 
more, to tell him he was sorry! He forgot or 
had not understood, you see, Jesus’ promises to 
return. 

Of all the people who came to know that 
Jesus still lived, I think Peter was happiest. 
I think his heart bounded with joy and hope the 
first time he heard the words, “ He is risen.” 
We know how he hurried to the garden. 

Just how Jesus came to Peter you will hear 
in the next period. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 


(If it is possible to secure the services of the 
music supervisor or any musical person who can 
help the department compose words and a tune 
for a little Easter song or refrain, let the children 
at this time choose the words for such a song, 
and make their own tune for it. See Fourth 
Sunday. If this is not possible have the depart- 
ment compose a special Easter prayer.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Continuing the Story. Peter had told a lie 
—a lie about his Teacher, whom he loved more 
than any one else in the world. He had said he 


176 


didn’t know his Teacher, when for over two years 
he had been following him about everywhere; 
when only that night he had boasted that he 
would go to prison and die with his Master. 
And now Jesus had died, and Peter had denied 
knowing him for fear of what might happen! 

Oh, why had he done it? How could he have 
done it? He could not forgive himself. Jesus 
had called him a rock. He didn’t feel much 
like a rock. It seemed that even his best friend 
couldn’t depend on him. I think he must have 
felt like taking back his old name. He went 
back to Galilee with his friends, and one day he 
said to them, “I am going fishing.” He was 
going back to his old work, you see. He was 
discouraged and heavy hearted, and he would 
never forgive himself for the lie he had told, but 
at least he could work. 

“We will go with you,” said his friends. 

They went out and got into the boat, and fished 
all that night but caught nothing. 

I wonder if they thought about another night, 
over two years before, when they had fished 
until morning and caught nothing until Jesus had 
shown them where to cast their nets. I think 
they must have, for their Teacher was in their 
minds most of the time. 


Just as the day was beginning to break, a voice 
came to them. In the dim light they thought 
they could see a figure on the beach. 

“ Boys, have you any fish? ” 

“No,” they answered. 

“Throw your net on the right of the boat,” 
the voice said, “‘ and you will find them.” 

They did so, and they could not haul it in for 
the quantity of fish in it. Then John said to 
Peter, “‘ It is the Master!” 

When Peter heard that he sprang into the sea. 
He could not wait for the boat to take him in. 
I think he had never swum so fast. He was 
going to see his Teacher! He would have a 
chance to show how sorry he was. He did not 
tell him at once. The boat came to shore and 
they were all busy at first dragging in the net 
full of fish — a hundred and fifty-three of them. 
There was a charcoal fire burning and they 
cooked the fish and ate breakfast together. All 
through the meal Peter kept wishing he could 
say what was in his heart. He was so sorry. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


He wanted Jesus to know it, and that he loved 
him. 

But Jesus knew. When they had finished 
breakfast he said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, do 
you love me more than the others do? ” 

And so Peter had a chance to tell him that he 
loved him. But he did not brag any more. He 
felt that he was weak, not strong any longer. 
He did not claim to love him more than the 
the others did. All he could say was, ‘‘ Master, 
you know everything, you can see that I love 
you.” 

And Jesus could see. He saw the real Peter 
who was so sorry for what he had done that he 
would never, never be untrue again. He not 
only forgave him but he trusted him with a great 
trust. 

“* Care for my people,” he said. 

How do you ‘suppose Peter felt? Jesus was 
trusting him again. Jesus thought he was good 
enough and strong enough and true enough to 
care for his people. He had forgotten the weak 
side of him, he saw now only the strong side, the 
side that was like a rock, and could be depended 
upon. 

I like to think that Peter saw in a flash all the 
sad and sick and forlorn who would be looking 
for Jesus still and needing him, and how he could 
show them that Jesus’ spirit still lived. I like 
to think that Peter in his joy at being trusted 
again said to himself, “I can earn my name! 
I can prove that I am to be depended upon, and 
prove my boast true. I am willing to go to prison 
or even die for my Master!” For that is just 
what he did do. Only a few weeks later he was 
back in Jerusalem, preaching in the temple 
against the orders of the priests, bearing cruel 
punishments gladly for Jesus’ sake, even being 
thrust into prison. 

He spent his whole life teaching Jesus’ 
way of living, and if you ask people why they 
love Peter, they will say, “ Because even though 
he made mistakes like us, he showed that if we 
are sorry, we will be forgiven and trusted again.” 


Report of School A 


Broom Brigade 

After class children planned to form a broom 
brigade and continue cleaning church lawn next 
Saturday. 


THIRTIETH WEEKDAY 
Work and Story 


Suggestions 


1. Work on missionary project. Suggest that 
in securing varieties of spring flowers to press 
and send to far-off friends, the aid of the whole 
department be enlisted. One child may be 
delegated to explain the plan in the service next 
Sunday. 

2. In this and in future programs continue 
to follow up the children’s pride in their church 
and love for it as God’s house. See Twenty- 
seventh Sunday, where the story of cleansing 
the temple and a visit to the church auditorium 
were suggested; also Twenty-seventh Weekday, 
where a hike for Palm Sunday decorations was 
outlined. 

All the year the children have been using the 
church property, and receiving gifts from the 
church. Besides keeping the lawn tidy and 
their own room clean, they may wish to make a 
material gift in return for what they have re- 
ceived. 

3. If the children are making their own 
worship services, suggest that one of them tell 
briefly before the offering the story of the widow’s 
mite, incorporated in “ George Kling’s Gift.” 

4. Practise songs for Sunday service. 


Story. 
GEORGE Kuina’s GIFT 


Teddy Hollis hustled into his wraps. He was 
in a hurry to get home from Sunday school and 
count his money. He kept it in a bank, and 
every day or so his father or mother or grand- 
mother would put a little more in for him. It 
was all his, for they had given it to him. When- 
ever he wanted to buy anything like marbles 
or crackerjack or parts for his radio, all he had 
to do was to go to his bank and take out what 
he needed. There was always enough there 
for any little thing and the big things he wanted 
his father bought for him anyway. 

_ George Kling put on his coat slowly. He was 
thinking. He had no bank at home, but he 
wanted some money dreadfully. Of course it 
might be that he could earn some but when he 
was lucky enough to make a few pennies they 
' were given at once to his mother to buy some- 
thing to eat or wear. It made him feel very 
important to be able to help her in this way. 


She called him the ‘‘man of the house,” and 
consulted him about the best way to spend what 
he made, so of course he was always on the 
lookout for chances to earn money. 

But a boy eight-years-old-going-on-nine can’t 
do business on a very large scale. It was hard 
to get “jobs ” in a town like Happy Valley, and 
the money he wanted now was not for flour or 
milk or for shoes or stockings for little Lucy. 

The children were all talking about the same 
thing as they left the church. 

“ [T’m going to bring a whole lot,” said Margaret. 
“When I tell my mother what it’s for maybe 
she'll give me as much as a quarter.” 

“My father gave me fifty cents to bring at 
Christmas time,” said Freddie Thorpe. “I’m 
going to ask him if he’ll give me that for next 
Sunday.” 

““T have my own money,” boasted Teddy. 

The children knew he had. They called him 
rich because he could always go to his own bank 
and find spending money to buy what he chose. 

‘How much money are you going to give?” 
asked Billy interestedly. 

‘Oh, I don’t know,” answered Teddy; “ prob- 
ably quite a lot.”” The rest looked enviously at 
him. 

You see, a real school was at last being built 
in Happy Valley. Miss True’s would meet in 
the church only a little while longer. The chil- 
dren were already beginning to feel a little home- 
sick. They had grown to love their church. 
They felt as if it was theirs. Lately they had 
been given charge of keeping the lawn picked up. 
After a storm which scattered twigs and papers 
about, they worked like little brownies, cleaning 
them away. When the seed was put in and the 
ground was soft, they kept off that part of it so 
that the grass might grow. They even planted 
a little flower garden in one spot. They loved 
their room too. They liked having the picture 
of Jesus about. It reminded them every day 
how they were trying to be like him. 


School A. Stuart, at mention of pic- 
ture, instinctively turned to look at the 
class picture of the great Teacher. It was 
hidden by a screen. He quietly walked 
over to it, removed the screen and returned 
to his place. 


177 


178 


‘“T wish we could make the church a present,” 
said Virginia, “‘ to show we like it, and we’re sorry 
to leave it.” 

“Could we, Miss True?”’ they asked. They 
thought a long time and decided at last to give 
the church a picture. 

‘** A nice one,” said Martha. 

“A big one,” said Freddie. 

‘All framed,” said Laura. “The ones we 
have are getting crushed at the edges.” 

“A picture of the church,” said Dorothy. 

“A picture of Jesus,” said John. 

‘““A picture of Jesus in the church,” said three 
together. So it was decided 

And that was why George Kling was anxious. 
He wanted as much as any child in the school 
to make a present to the church. But what 
could he do? His mother could give him no 
money, and whatever he could earn was needed 
to live on. 

The next day he went to Freddie Thorpe’s 
father’s store. 

“Ts there any work I can do, Mr. Thorpe? ”’ 
he asked. Mr. Thorpe often had work for him, 
like cleaning up rubbish, or carting off boxes, 
but he paid him in groceries from the store 
which his mother needed. 


“Yes, there is, my boy,’ answered Mr. 
Thorpe. “J’m cleaning out the basement this 
week. If you'll come every afternoon after 


school, Tl] send your mother ten pounds of 
sugar.” 

George could have shouted for joy. He ran 
all the way home to change his clothes and tell 
his mother. She kissed him and said it was 
pretty nice to have a man of the house who 
could provide their groceries, but it wasn’t until 
Friday that George found a way to make his 
gift. He had thought and thought, and Friday 
morning it came to him. His mother was 
emptying the sugar bowl on his cereal. 

“It’s a good thing that you’re earning that 
sugar,” she told him, “ for we’re all out of it.” 

George looked at his saucer and had an idea. 
‘“ Mother,” he asked, ‘ how long would it take 
‘me to go without ten cents’ worth of sugar?” 
He was so earnest that she figured it up for him. 

“Then that’s where I’m going to get my money 
for the picture,” he decided. 


“Mr. Thorpe,” he said that afternoon, “‘ when 
you send my mother that sugar, would you 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


just as soon leave out ten cents’ worth and give 
me the dime instead? ”’ 

“Why, of course, George,” agreed Mr. Thorpe. 
“You've certainly earned it.” 


It was Sunday morning, and two boys were 
hurrying toward the church. Each had some- 
thing special in his pocket. Each kept feeling 
of it to make sure it was safe. One boy was 
George Kling. He proudly carried a shiny, new 
ten cent piece in his pocket. The other was 
Teddy Hollis. He had gone straight home a 
week ago and opened his bank. There were 
eleven dollars and sixty-eight cents in it, enough 
for the roller skates he wanted, and the new 
battery for his radio, and all the marbles and 
alleys he’d need this spring and still there would 
be several dollars over. He counted out some 
change. 

“Tm going to give a whole dollar,” he said. 
“That’s probably more than anybody else will 
have. Won’t they all wish they were me!” 

He had the dollar now in his pocket, three 
quarters, two dimes and a nickel. It jingled 
pleasantly as he turned the corner by the store. 
He almost bumped into the slot machine which 
was fastened near the door. A nickel in the 
slot machine would give you a package of gum. 
But Teddy had no nickel to spare this morning. 
At least — why, there was a nickel in his change! 
If he bought some gum he would still have 
ninety-five cents left. That was probably more 
than any other child would have. He fumbled 
in his pocket, found the five cent piece, put it in 
the slot and turned the handle. He took the 
paper off the outside of the package, thrust two 
of the sticks of gum in his mouth and hurried on. 

In Sunday school the children were excitedly 
getting ready to present their gifts. ; 

“ T have thirty-five cents,” said one. 

““My mother gave me fifty cents,” said 
another. 

‘““Mine gave me forty,” said a third, “ and 
Jimmy brought seventy-five.” 

“Here comes Teddy,” whispered Bob Fair- 
child. ‘* How much did you bring, Teddy? ”’ 

‘““A dol—I mean ninety-five cents,” replied 
Teddy, a little proudly. ‘‘ Here, want some 
gum? It’s Juicy Fruit.” 

“‘ Ninety-five cents!” an echo went around 
the room. That was more than any one else had 
brought. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


George Kling suddenly felt as if his gift was 
very small indeed. No one had brought as little 
as he. He had been so pleased to have it — 
now he wondered if it was worth giving at all. 
But it was all he had. He must give it. And 
maybe Miss True and his heavenly Father would 
understand, even if the children wouldn’t. They 
would think: he didn’t want to bring any more. 
They were going forward now. Bob was putting 
five ten cent pieces in the basket. So was 
Adelaide. Jimmy had seventy-five cents. Then 
came Teddy. First one quarter went in, then 
another, and a third. “Seventy-five, eighty- 
five,” counted the children as the dimes followed, 
“ninety-five. My, most a dollar!” they all 
said. Miss True smiled but said nothing. She 
was looking at George. He had started up the 
aisle, but had decided his gift was too small, 
after all, and sat down again. Think of it — 
too small, when it meant all he had, and giving 
up sugar on anything for days and days! He 
thought that nobody knew. But Miss True did. 
She had called on Mrs. Kling the evening before, 
after George was in bed, and heard all about it. 

“You had a gift, didn’t you, George?” she 
asked gently. 

“Yes, but’ — said George, hesitating, “ but 
it isn’t very much.” He held out his hand with 
the ten cent piece in it. 

Miss True smiled and opened her eyes wide. 
“Tt is the biggest gift of all,’ she said, and led 
him up to the basket. 

“Why did she say that?” the children asked 
each other. “It was only ten cents. Teddy 
gave ninety-five cents and she never said a word.” 

Miss True was standing by the picture of 
Jesus. “There is a story about our great 
Teacher,” she began, “ which will show us how 
to judge the greatness of a gift.” 

Every one sat still, They always sat still 
when there was a story about their great Teacher. 

“Two rich men walked across the temple 
courts to the part called the treasury. There 
were great chests in which people brought their 
gifts to God. The gifts were money, gold and 
silver, and every one was supposed to give as 
he was able, to show that he loved God. The 
rich men opened the bags at their sides and 
drew out some gold coins. It was a great deal 
of money, and they held the coins up before 
dropping them in, so that every one near could 
see bow much they were giving. Jesus saw. 


179 


He was there with his disciples. Perhaps his 
disciples said to themselves, ‘That was a great 
deal of money.’ 

** The richly dressed men passed into the temple 
and others came by. Some put in silver, some 
gold coins. They too wished everybody to know 
how generous they were. To be sure they had a 
great deal more at home and would never miss 
what they gave, but they felt) that they were 
very generous just because the sums were large. 
Others dropped in money, not because they loved 
God, but because everybody expected it of them. 

“Then came a poor widow. She could hardly 
be expected to bring any gifts to God, for she 
had barely enough to live on. If she should 
give anything, it meant that she had to go with- 
out something to eat. But she went up to the 
chest, and not because she was expected to do it, 
and not to show how. generous she was, but 
because she felt that God was good to her and she 
wanted to show him she loved him, she put in 
two tiny pieces of copper, not so much as one 
penny in our money, but enough to buy a little 
food. It seemed hardly worth while, did it? 
And yet Jesus, watching, said to his disciples, 
‘I tell you, this poor widow has put in more 
than all the rest.’ ” 

Miss True paused. The children began to 
think. That was what she had said about 
George’s ten cents! Then she went on, and 
George’s eyes began to shine, for he saw now 
that God would think his gift worth while, even 
if the children didn’t understand. 

“* For they,’ Miss True went on, ‘ ‘ For 
they,’ Jesus said, ‘ gave from what they had to 
spare, but she in her want has put in all she 
had to live on.’ ” 


School B. Two Cuimpren (bursting 
forth): That would have made the chimes 
ring! 


Report of School A 

White Wings 

Used second suggestion. Le-der told story 
and showed picture of New Yoi White Wings 
(Stories of Brotherhood, Hunting). Children 
armed with brooms, mops, baskets and cleaning 
cloths attacked dirt and rubbish inside and out. 
The minister supervised the outdoor work. 
The leader assisted in digging out corners, washing 
windows and scrubbing floors in the Beginners’ 


180 


and Primary room. Two hours were spent in 
vigorous work. 

FiLorris (surveying the clean lawn): We ought 
to build a high fence around it, so we could keep 
it nice. The children coming from school will 
throw papers all over it. 

Leaver: That would be a pity, now we've 
worked so hard to get it clean. 

Cuitp: No, we ought to have a sign, “ Boys 
and girls please keep off the church lawn.” 

Cuitp: That’s too long to write. Just have 
‘Keep off the grass.” 

Cup: There isn’t any grass. 

Cuitv: We ought to plant some. 

Cup: We'll need two pieces of wood for 
signs. 

Cuinp: I've gol one. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Cup: My dad can print it on. 

Cuitp: Aw, I can print as good as anybody’s 
dad. Ill do the printing! 

Cuitp: We'll keep the other children off. We 
can say we're trying to keep our church lawn 
looking nice, so please keep off! 

Tina (picking up paper on lawn in the after- 
noon): I always pick up the papers on the church 
lawn now. Florrie and I, we came by the other 
day and we picked up a whole lot. 


Report of School B 


We, as part of a graded weekday school, 
ended our term at this time, although the third- 
grade children would gladly have continued the 
sessions. The entire school joined in a final 
picnic. 


THIRTY-FIRST SUNDAY 
April — May 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Suggestions, in the event of the children’s 
not planning their own service: 

(Practise in the pre-session period “ I Cannot 
Do Great Things for Him.’ Appropriate songs 
for worship are, “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,” 
and Easter refrain composed by department. 
The story of the widow’s mite may be told by 
one child before the offering.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Review and Criticisms. (Let the class com- 
ment on last Sunday’s service. Were the stories 
well chosen? Would a person who never had 
heard of Jesus know all that is necessary from 
those brief stories? If they themselves wanted 
to tell a story of Jesus, what part would they 
choose to make others love him and want to be 
like him? Let this discussion be conducted by 
the children. See ‘ Forming a Council,” Twenty- 
sixth Weekday. 


(The “picture gallery” will be near for ref- 
erence. As each child thinks of what he con- 
siders the most important thing to tell about 
Jesus, he rises, is recognized by the chairman 
before speaking, and his idea noted on the board 
by a “ secretary.” 


(Speak of the missionary in whose work the 
class is becoming interested. Suggest that the 
children vote on four stories which they will 
write her to tell to her group.) 


School A. Class voted to ask Miss —— 
to tell the Virginia Hollow children “‘ The 
Good Samaritan,” “ Jesus in the Temple,” 
“The Story of Palm Sunday,’ ‘“ Jesus 
and the Fishermen,” “ Stilling the Storm,” 
“The Shepherds,” “ Jesus Washing the 
Disciples’ Feet.”” Miss —— was inter- 
ested not only to receive these suggestions, 
but is asked for more. 

Leader told story of Peter suggested for 
last Sunday. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 


(Suggestions if children have not made the 
order of service: 

(An appreciation lesson on a new song, “I 
Cannot Do Great Things for Him,” or “ The 
Children’s Service,’ Songs for Little People. 

(Prayer, suggested by children, or one incor- 
porating the ideas in song. 

(Another song: “‘ God’s Children Live in Many 
Lands,” Song and Play for Children. 

(Third-grade child tells others about the new 
friends they are making in a distant land; invites 
them to share their pictures and charts, after 
session, and asks for their assistance in collecting 
flowers.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


A New Picture of Peter. Show pictures listed 
below, to be found in Primary Picture Set No. 3, 
International Graded Lessons. Let the children 
see if they can find Peter in these pictures, and 
imagine what he is thinking and saying in each. 


Picture: ‘‘ Jesus Washing the Feet of his Dis- 
ciples.” 


School A. CHILDREN: You can’t wash 


my feet! 
We wouldn’t wash his feet. 


Picture: ‘“ The Last Supper.” 


School A. Comp: He says he’s going to 
die, but it isn’t true. 


Picture: ‘ The Denial.” 
School A. CuitprREN: I told a lie. 
He'll think I’m bad. He’ll never like me 
any more. 


Picture: ‘“ Jesus and St. Peter.” 


School A. Cuitp: I'll do anything he 
ever wants me to after this. 


181 


182 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Story. 
PETER AND JOHN AND A LAME MAN 


(Bible reference: Acts 3 : 1-10.) 

[’'m thinking of another picture. Try to see 
it with me and tell me what Peter is saying in 
this. 

The picture I see is of a part of the temple in 
Jerusalem. It is after Peter has been trusted 
again to help carry on the work Jesus left un- 
finished. Everywhere he goes he tries to do 
whatever Jesus would do. That’s the way he 
knows whether he’s right or not, — by asking 
himself, “ What would Jesus do?” It is the 
way he keeps close to the heavenly Father. 
The heavenly Father is able to do marvelous 
things through Peter and John and the other 
disciples. ‘They keep so close to him, they ask 
so often, “ What would Jesus do? ”’ 

The picture I see has a beautiful gate in it. 
It is one of the gates of the temple. It is three 
o'clock, the hour of prayer in the temple. People 
are thronging in. There is a lame man sitting 
by the gate. He has been lame from his birth. 
The only way he knows of getting money for 
food is to beg for it. Every day his friends 
bring him to the Beautiful Gate so that he may 
beg of the people on their way to the temple. 

Peter and John are coming toward the Beautiful 
Gate. They are just about to go through. 
The lame man puts out his long, slim hand and 
asks them for money. Tell me what Peter and 
John do. Do they go right on in? Do they 
sive the lame man money? They can’t, they 
haven't any. What is there that they can do? 


School A. Frankie: They say they'll 
take him to Jesus. 

LEADER: Jesus had gone now, and left 
his work for his friends to carry on. 

Stuart: Then they'll heal him them- 
selves. 


They ask themselves, ““ What would Jesus do? ” 
What would Jesus do? 

In the picture I see, Peter is fixing his eyes 
on the lame man. So is John. Peter says, 
“ Look at us!” 

The lame man looks at them. He thinks they 
are going to give him something. They are, 
but it isn’t what he expects. Peter says, ‘I 
have no silver or gold, but I will give you what 
I have. In the name of Jesus Christ of 


Nazareth,’ — what do you think he tells him 
to do? 


School A. Cuorus: Rise! Get up! 


He is taking him by the right hand, and 
raising him up. The man’s feet and ankles are 
strong enough to hold him. He springs to his 
feet. He begins to walk and to leap, praising 
God as he goes into the temple with the disciples. 

When the people see him walking about, 
praising God, and recognize him as the man 
who has been begging for years at the Beautiful 
Gate of the temple, they don’t know what to 
make of it. They are astonished. But Peter 
and John are not astonished. They praise God 
themselves. Why, do you think? 


School A. Tommy|_ For helping them 
Marion] to do it! 


Did Jesus make a mistake in trusting Peter 
again? He is proving that he was truly sorry, 
isn’t he? 

What was it that the disciples asked themselves 
when they wondered what to do? ‘“*‘ What would 
Jesus dod’? Why wouldn’t that be a good thing 
for everybody to say, who is trying to be like 
Jesus? Would it help, do you think? For 
instance, a boy is on his way from schoo! whose 
mother has asked him to come directly home. 
Some other boys ask him to go fishing. He’s 
trying to live in Jesus’ way. What does he ask 
himself? (“What would Jesus do”) What 
does the boy do? (What his mother told him.) 
Every time he does that he is growing more like 
the great Teacher. 

A girl is taking an examination in school. 
She doesn’t know the answer. If she looks she 
can see what the boy across the aisle has written 
on his paper. She’s trying to live in Jesus’ way. 
What does she ask herself? (‘‘ What would 
Jesus do?’’) What will she do? And every 
time she keeps herself from cheating she’s making 
it easier to be true next time. 

A boy has heard some bad language. 


School A. Self-conscious looks between 
Stuart and Frankie. 


He doesn’t know exactly why it is bad, but 
his conscience tells him. That’s how God speaks 
to people. He is angry at some one. He wants 
to use those words he heard. But he wears a 


| 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


Christian flag. What does he ask himself? 
What will he do? Every time he stops and 
listens to God’s voice inside of him, telling him 
what is right or wrong, he makes it easier for 
God to speak to him again. And the more 
people there are who are listening to God’s voice 


and trying to be like Jesus, the sooner this 


prayer will be answered, “ Thy kingdom come.” 
(Use whatever examples seem applicable and 
close with a prayer for help to do as Jesus would 
do.) 

School A. Leaper: Can you think of 
times when it would help to say, “ What 
would Jesus do?” 

Tommy: When we want to giggle and 
make a noise in the circle. 

Leaver: I'll tell you a secret. It’s the 

only way J know how to know what’s right 
or wrong, asking, ““ What would Jesus do? ”’ 
If I know the answer and do as Jesus would 
do I know I’ve done right. If I know the 
answer and don’t feel strong enough to 
do it, is there anything more I can do? 

Anne: You can ask God to help you. 


Report of School A 


Popularity of Our Class 
Mrs. Norton (after church): Tell me, how does 
Frankie behave? Does he help you? This class 


183 


is the best thing that has happened to him this 
year. It is wonderful for a mother to think of 
his playtime so occupied. Saturdays always are 
a problem. 

FRANKIE (later): Miss Bradley, will this class 
keep up next year? 

Leaver: You'll be the same class, of course, 
but you'll have been promoted to the Junior 
Department. 

FRANKIE: Oh, I don’t want to pass! 

Fiorrie: We can come on Saturday though, 
just the same, can’t we? 


Worship Service Growing out of Weekday 

Activity 

Items in worship service inspired by White 
Wings activities of Saturday introduced by proud 
references to yesterday’s achievement of Our 
Class: 

Song, “‘ This is God’s House.” 

Scripture, ‘“I was glad when they said unto 
me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.” 

Conversation about our pleasure in a clean 
church, and plans for enlisting everybody’s help 
in keeping the lawn, our “‘ temple court,” beauti- 
ful. 

Scripture, “ Enter into his gates with thanks- 
giving, and into his courts with praise.” 

Praise Song. 


THIRTY-FIRST WEEKDAY 
Hiking and Planning 


A Hike 


This hike is to find wild flowers to press and 
send to the class’ new distant friends: 

Continue with suggestions for Thirtieth Week- 
day. 


Alternate: Planning a Worship Service 


Let the children try planning a worship service 
entirely around their after-Easter experiences. 
By now they should thoroughly understand the 
parts of the service and the reason for them, and 
be able, next Sunday, to show the other classes 
how to make one. 

Speak of the Easter season as a period of such 
joy for the disciples that they felt like singing 
much of the time. We do not know what hymns 
they sang but they were happy ones. Choose 
the most joyous possible and practise, looking 
toward Children’s Day. 


Report of School A 


Good Sportsmanship 
Leaver: It certainly looks like rain. 


Stuart: Aw, who’s afraid of rain? 
Miss Bradley, aren’t you going? 
going 


Come on, 


Leaver: No, it’s too wet. I was so disap- 


pointed this morning, but then I thought right 
off, this is the very first day we’ve planned a 
hike when we couldn’t go. Think of it, all 
winter long! Haven’t we been pretty lucky! 

Sruart: I don’t care, even if we can’t go. 
Alternative for Hike 

Games 

Story, “ George Kling’s Gift ” 

Work on toys for Virginia 

Leader made work alluring by appeal to 
children’s imagination and humor. Standing 
behind a screen, holding up paper bags containing» 
unfinished wooden animals and all necessary 
materials for completing them, she impersonated 
sheep, ducks and dogs, ie., “Baa! I need a 
standard and some wheels! Who'll finish me)” 
“Bow! wow! I’m only half sawed out,” 
“Quack, quack, I want some shellac.” 

A committee of girls was appointed to compose 
worship services. 

JoHn (as Karl, the new boy, presented two 
perfectly finished toys): He talks funny, but you 
ask anybody in his grade and they'll tell you 
he’s the best maker there is! 

Continued Interest in the Church Property 

JoHNn: I was coming past the church the other 
day and there was some excelsior on the lawn. 
So I picked it up. 


184 


THIRTY-SECOND SUNDAY 
May 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 
(Songs and prayer as planned by the children. 
In pre-session period practise Children’s Day 
songs.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Fresh Views of Familiar Material. (Have 
the names of the disciples on the blackboard, and 
have a “Great Teacher’? dramatization in a 
different form from preceding ones. Each child 
takes the name of a disciple, and is supposed to 
be now doing Jesus’ work. When people come 
to them, as they came to Jesus for help of different 
kinds, they ask themselves what their Teacher 
would do or say and pass on his teachings. The 
leader may be in turn different people who need 
to be taught Jesus’ way. The “ disciples” may 
look at the “ picture gallery” for reminders of 
what their Teacher did or said to help people 
‘in like need. See report of School A, Twenty- 
sixth Sunday, but add new situations, e.g. ‘‘ ’m 
no good; I keep thinking I’ll be better but I 
make more mistakes.’”” How would Peter answer? 
“IT am sad, for the one I loved most in the world 
is dead. I shall never see him again. I have 
lost my best friend.”” How would any of the 
disciples answer?) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 
Mothers’ Day Program 


Song. ‘Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.” 

Song. ‘‘ Gentle Child of Nazareth” (a song 
which the mothers in Jesus’ land still sing). 

Mother Stories. Leader mentions stories in 
which mothers appear and children guess the 
stories, i.e. ‘“‘I am thinking of a mother who 
had no crib for her baby.” “I am thinking of 
a mother who protected her baby by hiding him.” 
“T am thinking of mothers who heard that a 
great Teacher had come to town.” 

Poem. The First Children’s Day (page 25). 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


Looking Ahead. (If it is desirable to con- 


tinue the thought of Children’s Day and the 


children’s part in it, discuss more in detail their 
share. Show Hofmann’s Christ in the Temple. 
Let the children think of different parts of a 
possible church service which this picture would 
suggest, e.g. Songs, or poems: “ The Church,” 
“This is God’s House,” “Sabbath Morning 
Bells,” all in Songs for Little People.) . 

Story, “Jesus in the Temple” (told by a 
child). 

Showing picture. 

Gift for the church (possibly framed copy of 
Hofmann’s picture). 

(if the children have not already started earn- 
ing money for a gift, let them list ways now. 
The leader should explain to the parents the 
idea of their gift, and ask them to help make the 
earning of money possible. 

(The children themselves’ could enlist the 
parent’s cooperation by writing in this session, 
notes like the following to take home:) 

Dear Mother, 

Our class is trying to earn money to make a 
present to the church. Will you help me think 
of a way I can earn my share? 


Report of School A 


A Mothers’ Day Inspiration 
Tina: I want to finish my book today because 
I’m going to give it to my mother for her birthday. 


Council Meeting 

Sruart (as Anne took. the chair): She’s not 
chairman; Lawrence was. (Lawrence cheerfully 
agreed.) 

LeaperR: Lawrence once took John’s place. 
Anne was elected chairman. 

Sruart (who had been doing electioneering): 
There’s five of us want Lawrence. 

Leaver: But Anne was elected. 

LawrRENcE: No, Miss Bradley! 

Leader explains what a secretary is for. Need 
clearly shown today. Had to refer to her own 
record. At this point Karl and Lawrence 
started a fight. 


185 


186 


LreapER: While we’re in council let’s decide 
what to do about these boys. 

ANNE (chairman): What shall we decide to 
do about these boys? 

Joun: Quarantine them from the hike next 
Saturday. 

Anne: Any other ideas? 

Stuart: Quarantine them for seven weeks. 

Fiorrie: Help them to use their self-control. 

LAWRENCE (interested, but embarrassed): Go 
on. I don’t care what you do to me. 

Leaver: There are three suggestions. Let’s 
take them up. The first was to ask them to 
stay away from the hike next Saturday. Would 
that help them to keep order in Sunday school? 

Joun: Yes, if you keep them from doing 
something they want to, they'll be more liable to 
remember. 

Leaver: The next was to quarantine them 
for seven weeks. The class will be over by then. 
Would it be fair? Remember our Teacher’s 
rule. Would you think it fair if we were talking 
about you? (silence) The next idea was to help 
them use their self-control. Just how could we 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


do that? Lawrence, have you any ideas? We’re 
here to help each other you know. We'd like 
your ideas, too. 

Cuitp: Look at our picture. 

Cuitp: You don’t look anywhere when you're 
fighting. 

Cuitp: How would he ever get out of quaran- 
tine? 

Cuitp: You let Florrie come back. 

Leaver: Florrie was sorry and showed that 
she was. 

Joun: Well, Lawrence is sorry now, I can see 
it in his face. 

FRANKIE: Yes, he is, Miss Bradley. I can see 
it too. 

Tina: He’s almost crying. 

Joun (after the session): Miss Bradley, I’m 
sorry I was a naughty boy. 

Stuart: I’m sorry I was a naughty boy, Miss 
Bradley. 

LEADER: Honestly, Stuart? 

Stuart: Yes, honest! 

Lawrence: Miss Bradley, I’m sorry. 
awfully sorry I was a naughty boy. 


I’m 


THIRTY-SECOND WEEKDAY 


Various Plans 


A Hike for Wild Flowers 


The more the children are out-of-doors this 
month the happier and better they willbe. There 
will on these hikes be opportunity for nature 
study and stories. 


Indoor Session 


If the session is held indoors, practise Children’s 
Day songs and continue work on the missionary 
project. 

Mount flowers already gathered and pressed 
for the children in another place. 

Finish uncompleted work. Ifastory is wanted, 
tell ‘‘ Half-Finished Land.” 


Report of School A on Hike 


Stuart Will Not Spoil this Hike 

LEADER (before starting): Did you wear your 
pin, Stuart? (Christian flag.) 

Stuart: No, it’s on my other coat. 
I can keep myself from grumbling! 
Tina is Not Weary in Well-Doing. 

Tina: Miss Bradley, I found a whole lot of 
papers on the church lawn one day and I picked 
them up. Every time now when [I go by I do. 
Songs About Teachers are Not Forgotten 

Children sang their two original songs about 
teachers for the two public school teachers who 
went on our hike. (See pages 22 and 23.) 
Council versus Action 

LEADER (attempting in vain a council meeting 
in woods): Boys, please come and help us hold 
this meeting. 

Stuart (poised between life and death): I’m 
up here getting cherry blossoms to trim the church. 


But 


Story. 
Haur-FinisHep LAND 


There was once a little boy called Charles, who 
lived with his father and mother and brothers 
and sisters in a pretty house. He was a nice 
boy, good-tempered and kind to his brothers and 
sisters, and everybody liked him; but he had 
one bad fault, and I want to tell you how he 
was cured of it. 

One day he went to see a cousin of his who had 
a beautiful kite. Oh, you should have seen how 
beautifully it flew! 


Charlie said, “ I would like to have a kite like 
that. Did you make it yourself? Do show me 
how to make one!” 

So his cousin told him that he must get some 
pieces of wood and some calico, and showed him 
how to fix them together, and Charlie went 
home and told his father and mother what he 
wanted for making a kite. 

So his father got him some pieces of wood the 
very next day, and his mother got him some 
calico, and he began to put the kite together. And 
he was just wondering how he would ever get 
enough string for a kite that was going to fly as 
high as this one, when his brother Dick came 
in and said, “‘O Charlie, what do you think? 
I’ve got some cardboard models. There’s a 
house and a windmill and a church, and you 
cut them out of cardboard and put them to- 
gether, and they look fine when they’re done.” 

** Oh,” cried Charlie, “‘ do let me have one to 
make! ” 

‘““Hadn’t you better finish your kite?” his 
mother asked. 

‘Oh, I can finish my kite later on when I’ve 
got the string,” he said. 

So he bundled the sticks and calico into a 
corner, and began to cut out the cardboard 
windmill. And he cut away, and the sails and 
the windmill looked ever so nice, and he began 
to think how beautiful it would look when it was 
all gummed together and stuck up on a board. 
Only just then teatime came and the things had 
to be cleared away. And after tea Charlie 
thought he would like a game, and then it was 
time to go to bed. 

The next day there was ice on the pond and 
the snow was falling fast. 

“We must make a sledge,” said Charlie, 
“like the one they've got next door, and go 
tobogganing today. Father, may we make a 
toboggan? ” 

* Aren’t you going to finish your kite? ”’ 

** Oh, that can wait!” 

“Well, wouldn’t you like to finish the wind- 
mill? ”’ 

“Oh, I can do that some other day! 
make a toboggan.” 

So Charlie went and fetched an old packing- 
case that stood in the yard, and he and Dick 


Let’s 


187 


188 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


worked away all the morning, sawing and nailing, 
and by dinnertime, Charlie was beginning to 
think that it was very hard work making a sledge. 

“Let’s go and slide on the pond this after- 
noon,” he said. ‘‘ We can finish the toboggan 
afterward.” : 

So out they went and Charlie spent all of the 
afternoon sliding. After tea he was so tired that 
he felt that he would like to sit still and read a 
story-book, and he was so sleepy with his after- 
noon on the ice thdt he was quite glad to go to 
bed early. 

He never quite knew how it happened, but 
just as he was getting into bed, he heard some 
one say to him, “ Charlie, come this way with 
me.” 

And he looked, and saw a man — such a funny- 
looking man! He only seemed to have half 
a coat on, and his boots were not done up, and 
somehow Charlie had to follow him. And he 
led him right out of the house and up the street. 

“Where are you going to take me?” Charlie 
asked. 

“Tm going to take you to live with me for a 
little while.” 

“ What’s the name of thie place? ” 

“* Half-Finished Land,’ he said. 
see how you like it.” 

When they turned the corner of the street, 
they came to a place like nothing Charlie had 
ever seen before. There was a path leading up 
to a house, but the path stopped short before 
you got there, and you had to climb over mounds 
of rubbish to get to the front door. Then when 
they got to the door there wasn’t any bell or 
knocker on it. 

‘They never finished building this house, you 
see,”’ the man said. 

‘“ How are we going to get in? ”’ said Charlie. 

“Well, perhaps they never put the lock on, 
either,” said the man. 

And so it was. They just pushed, the door 
opened, and in they went. 


“IT want to 


They went into the dining-room. There was 
a carpet over half the floor, and there was paper 
on a little bit of the walls. There was just the 
remains of a tiny fire in the grate, but oh, it was 
so cold! 


“You see,” the man said, “‘ they never finished 
bringing in the coals. We had better have 
sontething to eat, and then you can go upstairs 
to bed.” 

So they sat down to supper. Charlie thought 
at first there was plenty to eat. There was 
meat and eggs and bread and butter and cake; 
but when he started, he found he couldn’t 
swallow anything. The meat had only just 
begun to be cooked, and the bread and cake 
weren't properly baked, and eggs hadn’t been 
half boiled. So he soon said that he would like 
to go to bed. The man took him upstairs, but 
what was his surprise to find when they got to 
the bedroom, they could see the sky, with the 
stars shining, right through the ceiling. 

‘Oh, yes!”’ the man explained. “You see, 
they didn’t finish the roof. Good-night.” 


Charlie tried to make himself warm and com- 
fortable. He curled himself up in the bed. 
But the bed hadn’t been properly made. Oh, 
he was so cold and wretched, and he began to 
want to cry, and he thought to himself, ““ What 
a dreadful thing it is not to do things thoroughly! 
If only the people who got this house ready had 
finished! ”’ 


At last he could stand it no longer. All was 
quiet, and he made up his mind that he would 
run out and get back home again. So he jumped 
up in bed, and knock-knock-knock, lo and 
behold, he was back in his own room at home, 
and his father was knocking at the door and 
telling him it was time to get up. 


“Tt’s very cold this morning, Charlie; hurry 
and come down. What are you going to do 
today? ” 

“ First of all I am going to finish my kite, 
father. Then there’s that windmill to be done. 
And then Dick and I must get the toboggan 
ready, in case there’s any more snow.” 

That was how Charlie learned to finish the 
things he began. And when he grew up there 
was a Bible text he was very fond of. It was this: 
“ Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with 
thy might.” And he used to say, “* That means 
that we ought always to finish the things we 
begin.” — H. C. Carter. 


———_— ee ee a 


THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY 
7 May 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Nature songs and verses which will be used 
in the services on Children’s Day.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Recalling the Old. (Recall the story of 
Jesus’ disciples being sent out with the reminder, 
“‘ Freely ye received, freely give,” told in connec- 
tion with the Happy Valley story, Eighth Week- 
day. Name over ways in which our church has 
freely given to the class since it began to go to 
school to the great Teacher. Speak of the 
picture that may be presented on Children’s 
Day and let the children tell of the different 
ways in which they are earning money.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 


(To introduce the songs and other worship 
material to be used on Children’s Day, read 
“The First Children’s Day,’ page 25, and 
follow, if desirable, with the song, “I Think 
When I Read That Sweet Story of Old.’’) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


New Plans. (There is very little time left to 
complete whatever work has been started in the 
weekday sessions. Outdoor activities probably 
have claimed most of the interest lately. But 
to leave unfinished work which has been once 
begun, or to allow the children to drift toward 
the close of the year without bringing their 
class interests and purposes to some sort of 
satisfactory climax, would be not only losing a 
great opportunity, but violating an important 
law of project teaching. 

(The sessions of the class will not be brought 
to a proper close unless the children have that 
gratifying sense of work well completed and 
interest satisfied, which should accompany any 
educational enterprise. 

(A plan may be on foot for a closing party to 
which parents and friends will be invited to view 
the ‘‘ picture gallery” representing stories heard 
during the year of the great Teacher; the 
‘illuminated Bibles” containing songs, poems 


and passages of Scripture learned, and pictures 
studied; the charts or posters explaining the 
life of the new friends in another place, and an 
exhibit of the gifts made for them. 

(This period may be spent making plans for 
the exhibit, and if the situation warrants it, 
telling “‘ Half-Finished Land,” on page 187.) 


Report of School A 


Spring Service Prepared by Anne 
1. Quiet Music. (To put people in the 
mood to worship.) 
2. Song. ‘“ The Alder by the River.” 
3. Verses. (To call people to praise.) 
4. Praise Song. “ Praise Him, praise Him.” 
5. Call to Prayer. 
6. The Lord’s Prayer. 
7. Song. ‘Sing, ye Happy Children.” 
8. Offering. “We give Thee but Thine 
9. Prayer. Thanks. Helping us to be good, 
rain, sunshine, warm weather, birds’ songs, food, 
gardens. Ask not to harm birds. Ask not to 
hit back; to use self-control; to help mother, 
when sick; to help church and others. 

10. Chords. 
1l. Songs. 
**God’s Children Dwell; ” 
Nazareth;’’ He Cares for Me;” 

Bright and Beautiful.” 
Children Plan Their Exhibit 
Leaver (al beginning of second class period): 
I know a girl in this class who kept herself from 
crying when she fell and broke her collar bone. 
She used her self-control. I saw a boy yesterday 
on the hike stop himself from going down under 
the bridge when [ asked him not to. He wanted 
to go. He used his self-control. I heard the 
boys teasing another boy, and instead of growing 
angry this boy just laughed with them as if it 
were a good joke. He used his self-control. 
Every time we're together you use it. Today 
we have many things to decide and we shall have 
to use it to pay attention. (Rapid announcements 
followed.) We might have a party when this 
class closes to show our friends what we’ve been 
doing this year. I don’t know exactly what we'd 
show— 


“Tell Me the Stories of Jesus;” 
‘“ Gentle Child of 
** All Things 


189 


190 


Cup: There’s the gallery. 

Sruart: We could tell them the stories of the 
pictures. 

Cnitp: We could show them Virginia Hollow 
pictures. 

Cuitp: Our own pictures, too. 

Crimp: And the toys we’ve made. 

Sruart: And our books. 

Lreaper: The toys aren’t finished. 

Cxorus: We'll come after school and finish 
them. 
Children’s Day Service Grows Naturally 

The climax to the children’s interest in the 
church, started by their occasiona! contributions 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


to the decorations, deepening into gratitude by 
the gift of Easter plants, and showing in service 
like care for the church property, was to come in 
a gift to the Junior Department of a picture of 
Christ in the Temple. 
earning money for it. Children’s Day song 
practise suggested an appropriate occasion for 
presenting it. 

FRANKIE: I could tell the story of it. 

Anotuer: All our class could go up. 

Leader: Could you think of a song to sing? 

SEVERAL: “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.” 
“Gentle Child of Nazareth.” He was a boy 
there. 


They were already — 


————— 


THIRTY-THIRD WEEKDAY 
“Planning the Exhibit 


Games 


Use those which require self-control, such as 
Musical Rug, Ten Steps and Statues. 


Work and Demonstration 


Finish up all work started on charts, books 
or gifts. 

If the final weekday program is to enable the 
class to share with parents and friends the type 
of work and play enjoyed together during the 
year, plan the program today. Decide on the 
hour and day, the friends to invite, what refresh- 
ments, if any, shall be served, how the rcom shall 
be arranged, and how the privileges of explaining 
the various interests represented shall be divided. 
All the children should agree on the most impor- 
tant points to be brought out about each, but 
to certain ones would be delegated special parts. 
For instance, although all may know the stories 
represented by the picture gallery, two may be 
chosen to stand near it, to call attention to it, 
to point out the favorites, or to answer any 
questions about it. Thus two others may have 
the fun of showing the books and explaining how 
they first had the idea of “ illuminating ”’ or 
putting special designs on the pages. Two 
others may tell about the far-away friends whose 
ways they have been studying. Others may 
show the gifts made, and explain how they were 
made. One or two may interpret whatever 
charts there are. 

The young demonstrators should be given a 
chance to practise before the leader, or better, 
during the week, before some of their mates, with 
the leader present. 


Report of School A 
Exhibit Plans 

Children had met during week to (1) arrange 
photographs on charts; (2) finish toys; (3) 
make key to map of town made by Junior. 

The gloom occasioned by the horrible possi- 
bility of no refreshments at the party (all avail- 
able monies being necessary for the picture fund) 
was lifted by the providential proposal of Miss 
Fairfield, the superintendent. Her offer to 
furnish materials for lemonade was graciously 
accepted. Girls were appointed to make it the 
morning of the party, much to boys’ disgust. 


Dramatization Saves the Day 

Leaper: I'll list on the board the parts of the 
exhibit to be explained, and the class must 
decide today what part each one will have charge 
of. First we'll decide how to greet our guests. 
Who shall be appointed to meet them at the 
door? 

FLorriE: I want to tell about the gallery! 

Joun: [ll do that, too. 

LEADER (promptly): All right. Tl put down 
Florrie and John for the gallery. Now who 
will mect the guests at the door? 

Joun: Til tell about the books and how we 
made ’em. 

LeapER: But you were on the gallery. 
will greet the guests? 

Jonn: Well, I want to be at the gallery and 
tell about the books too. 

Votces or Karu, Tina, ANNE, LAWRENCE, 
Tommy (heard above the din): Vd rather do the 
Bibles. Let me explain the toys. I made most 
of them. I want to tell about the White Wings! 
No fair, I made that chart. Here, gimme the 
map, [ll tell about that. 


Who 


Leaver (above them all): Lawrences! You 
nearly tore Elsie’s map. Give it to me. 
CUIneffectually) Children, we must be quiet 


CUnspired) Tl tell you, we’ll act it all out right 
now. John, will you be the first one to greet 
the guests? Lawrence, you go over to the 
“ Bible” table. Anne, you go to the toys. 
Marian, you explain the White Wings. Vl 
be a visitor to the exhibit. Who'll explain 
Virginia and the map? 

Eager volunteers. Leader disappeared. Ap- 
peared at door to find John extending his hand 
cordially. 

Joun (unnaturally courteous): How do you do? 
Would you like to take off your hat? 

Vistron: Thank you, no, I'll keep 
hear you have been doing interesting 
your class. Can you tell me about it? 

JoHN: Would you like to see our toys? (Con- 
ducted her to toy table.) Anne will explain them 
to you. 

This worked like a charm, the different children 
vying with each other for the conductor’s réle, 
and lo, the program had been very happily 
rehearsed! 


it on. I 
things in 


19] 


THIRTY-FOURTH SUNDAY 
May 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Songs, verses and offering service to be used on 
Children’s Day.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Recalling the Old. Did you ever start any- 
thing and not finish it? 


School A. CHILDREN: Oh, my, yes! 
I’m always doing that. 

Stuart: I start to read Johnny Blos- 
som and after a little while I say, “ Oh, 
that’s no good. Guess [ll go out and 
cut the grass,”’ and after a while I say, 
Oh, that’s no good. Guess I'll go and 
play with the boys,’’ and soon as I be- 
gin a game of marbles I say, “ Oh, that’s 
no good,” and before I know it it’s night 
and I haven’t finished anything all day! 


Was it too hard? Did 
you grow tired of it? Did you want to do some- 
thing else and then forget about it? Or when 
you had fairly started did you grow discouraged 
and find it too hard? Did you ever hear a story 
of any one who didn’t finish things he had begun? 
(Recall “ Half-Finished Land.”) How would 
you like to live with people who were always 
half-doing what they started? Has this class 
started anything it hasn’t kept up? 


Why did you stop? 


School A. LrapER: We started keep- 
ing the lawn clean. 

SEVERAL: Well, I pick up papers on it 
all the while, still. 

Fiore: Well, Miss Bradley, daddy 
got the wood for the sign, but he never has 
time to put the printing on. 


(Get reasons for stopping. Handwork may 
have grown wearisome; interest may have 
waned in making their books beautiful; trying 
not to quarrel, to be helpful and obedient, orderly 
and controlled may have been discouraging 
tasks.) Who is the real Teacher of our class? 


School A. ANNE: Miss True? Oh, no, 
of course not — Jesus. 


Do you suppose Jesus ever got discouraged 
and felt like giving up? 


School A. Cuitpren: No. Yes. Well, 
he probably got discouraged but he never 
gave up. 


When he was a boy in his father’s carpenter 
shop (show the picture of “ Jesus as a Boy in 
Nazareth ’’) how long do you think he worked 
on a thing he once started? What makes you 
think he always finished? It isn’t really wicked 
to leave something undone. Then why do you 
believe he never did? We think of him as 
having the courage to stick to a thing, don’t we? 
It’s weak to give up at the first hard place. And 
our great Teacher was not weak. He was strong. 

(Show the picture, ‘ Jesus Washing the Feet 
of the Disciples.””) Do you remember how they 
kept quarreling over first place, as if to sit in a 
certain place meant that one was greater than 
the other? Shouldn’t you think Jesus would 
have felt discouraged, and like giving up trying 
to teach them any more? You or I might have 
said, ‘‘ Oh, it’s too hard. I’m tired of trying to 
make people understand what my Father wants. 
I’m going to give up.” 


School A. ANNE (reproachfully): Jesus 
wouldn’t say that. 


He never gave up, did he? He knew too much 
about his heavenly Father for that. He knew 
that the more he tried, the more strength God 
would give him. 

There was one of Jesus’ disciples who thought 
he was strong. He boasted that he would be 
willing to — (hold up the picture, ““ The Denial,” 
and ask for the story). You know how dis- 
couraged Peter felt after he had shown he was so 
weak. Do you think he felt like giving up? 
Did he give up trying to help Jesus? What kept 
him from it? Jesus made him believe that he 
was strong in spite of everything. 

Jesus was always making people believe they 
could do what seemed impossible. You see he 
made them understand that with God’s help 
they could do anything. 


192 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE 


Let’s write on these slips of paper something 
we've grown discouraged about, and think we 
can’t go on with alone. Then we will pray for 
strength to keep on trying to do it. Maybe 
we've given up trying to learn one of the songs 
for our worship service; maybe we’ve grown 
tired of working on our books or on a gift for 
somebody. Maybe we think it’s too hard to 
keep the church lawn tidy, and have stopped 
picking up the papers as we did at first. Maybe 
we keep on quarreling in spite of thinking we 
won't. Perhaps we haven’t told the truth. 
Perhaps we’ve cheated. Perhaps we keep say- 
ing we'll try not to be naughty and then we 
forget. Whatever it is, let’s write it down on 
these papers and hold them in our hands. 


School A. Stuart: Oh, [ know! Here, 
give me a pencil! 

ANOTHER: Can we write more than one 
thing? 


Let’s look at the picture of our Teacher. He 
just made people believe that they could do hard 
things. He made them believe that God would 
give them strength if they tried. Jesus is still 
helping us. He is still teaching us that anything 
is possible with God. Let’s remember it when 
we pray. (Make the children understand that 
you do not want to see what they have written, 
that they may put the papers in their pockets 
and take them home when they are through 
with them. They will write more sincerely if 
you make this clear.) 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 
(Continue the worship by using material to be 
used on Children’s Day. In the prayer ask 
especially for strength to keep on trying when 
we feel discouraged and like giving up.) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 
The New Story. 
THE MAN AT THE PooL 
_ (Bible reference, John 5 : 1-8) 

Once there was a man who had been sick for 
thirty-eight years. Nobody had been able to 
cure him, and he must have been discouraged. 
Shouldn’t you be discouraged if you had been 
lying helpless for thirty-eight years? Shouldn’t 


GREAT TEACHER 193 


you think, ‘‘ There’s no use in my ever trying 
to do anything?” Perhaps you’d even boast 
a little of what a very bad sickness yours was 
and how many people had tried to help you, but 
there was no use. Every one would feel sorry 
for you. If a stranger came along and told you 
to get up, what should you be likely to tell him? 
You’d probably say he didn’t understand, that it 
was impossible to get up, that you hadn’t walked 
for thirty-eight years. 

Even if a new doctor said he’d cure you, you’d 
probably explain to him that yours was not like 
other people’s illnesses, and you couldn’t possibly 
get well now. It would be different if you’d only 
been ill a month, or even a year or two, — but 
thirty-eight years! Almost any one would give 
up hope. 

I think this man I’m telling you about must 
have lost hope in any person’s ever making him 
well, but he still believed that if one certain 
thing could happen he might be cured. 

Near one of the gates of the city of Jerusalem 
there was a pool of water cut almost entirely in 
the rock. It was divided, like an open book, 
and a porch with pillars separated the two parts. 
There were porches all around the pool, five in 
all, and stone columns held up the roof. 

Now these porches were seldom empty. There 
were usually a great many sick people as near 
the edge of the pool as they could get, for they 
were waiting for something to happen in the 
water. Every little while the pool, which most 
of the time was so clear that a person could see 
his reflection in it, began to stir as though a 
spring were bubbling up from underneath. 

Some people called it the Pool of the Angel, 
for it was thought that when the water bubbled 
so an angel came and touched tit. 

This was what the sick people on the porches 
were waiting for, for there was a belief that the 
first person who stepped into the pool after the 
waters began to stir would be cured of whatever 
disease he had. So the blind and lame and 
paralyzed lay on the floors or sat leaning against 
the pillars watching and waiting. Their mats 
were drawn as close to the water as possible 
that they might be ready at the first sign of dis- 
turbance. Some could just manage to let them- 
selves down into the water when it bubbied up. 
Others had to wait when it bubbled for some one 
to help them into it. Those who could not move 
easily themselves of course lost their chance 


194 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


over and over again. The man who had been 
sick for thirty-eight years was one of these. 
He had friends to bring him to the pool each day, 
but there they left him, and when the moment 
came for which he and all the others were waiting, 
this poor man found himself day after day, and 
month after month, losing his chances. He must 
have been terribly discouraged and ready to give 
up hope of ever being well. 

One day Jesus came to the pool. Probably 
there were many people in the porches, but Jesus 
saw this man lying on his mat and wanted to 
help him. I think he wanted to help him most 
because the man needed him most. That was 
like Jesus, wasn’t it? He saw just how sick the 
man was, and understood. 

“Do you want to get well?” he asked. I 
wonder what the sick man thought. He had 
been sick for thirty-eight years. Of course he 
wanted to get well. That was why he came to 
the pool each day. There was a bare chance 
that some one might help him in at the right 
time. Do you suppose that he thought this 
stranger with the kind face might help him to 
get into the water, if he understood? 

School A. FRANKIE: He thought, 
“ Now Jesus will cure me.” 

Leaver: But I think that he didn’t 
know of Jesus. 

FRANKIE: Well, maybe he thought he’d 
do something for him. 


Tt was the only hope he had of ever getting 
well. He would explain, “I have nobody, sir, 
to put me into the pool when the water stirs, 
but while I am getting down some one else 
steps in ahead of me.” 


Jesus said to him, “ Get up, pick up your mat, 
and walk!” 

Get up— without any help—and walk — 
alone! Without waiting for the waters to be 
troubled! Without bathing in them! I think 
I should be almost frightened to try to walk alone 
after lying in bed for thirty-eight years. I 
should be afraid of hurting myself or making 
myself worse. But there was something in 
Jesus’ face and Jesus’ voice which drove away 
all thought of fear. Instead, it made one believe 
he could do anything at all that Jesus expected 
of him. Jesus expected the sick man to get 
up and walk, and suddenly the man knew thal he 
could do it. He tried, and when he tried God 
gave him strength. He picked up his mat and 
walked away! If he had said, ‘‘ Oh, but that is 
impossible; you do not know how sick I am,” 
and had never tried, he never would have received 
the strength to do it. 

Wasn't Jesus wonderful to make people believe 
they could do what he expected of them? 

He is still expecting a great deal of his friends. 
He still says to us, “‘ Try; only believe you can 
do it, and God will give you the strength needed.” 

And that is why Peter and John and the 
others disciples and all the great Christian men 
and women through hundreds of years have done 
hard tasks for Jesus’ sake and never given up. 

And that is why we’re ashamed, if we’re friends 
of Jesus, to give up easily. We know that he 
still expects us to keep on trying. “ Only 
believe you can do it,” he still says; “ just try, 
and when you try God will give you strength.” 


(Close with another prayer, for strength through — 


the week, and through the summer, to keep on 
trying to do the good things which the class 
started out to do.) 


THIRTY-FOURTH WEEKDAY 
The Exhibit 


Final Plans 


If the exhibit is planned for today, there will 
be no chance for any other program. If, however, 
the exhibit should not be until next week, use 
today to make further preparations cither for 
this or for Children’s Day. Final decisions will 
be necessary in connection with this service, and 
the gift picture must be bought. If possible the 
children should accompany the leader to the 
store and select both picture and frame. It 
should be decided in just what way the gift will 
be presented; how best it will fit into the service; 
who shall be spokesman; who shall tell the story 
if this is desired; what should follow it. If the 
program for Children’s Day is not complete it 
should be planned in detail today. 


Story. ° 
Tue Boy Wuo Learned Most 


(Told by the leader as part of the exhibit 
program.) 

There was once a company of children who had 
been to school for nearly a year. It was an odd 
kind of school. In it one learned to read and 
write and do sums, but that wasn’t all. Miss 
True taught these things and many people who 
didn’t understand would have told you that Miss 
True was the only teacher in the town, and that 
such subjects as spelling and geography and 
number work were the only kind taught. 

But when Miss True herself said to a child, 
as she often did, with a smile on her face, “ You 
are going to school, aren’t you?” neither she nor 
the children were thinking of reading or arith- 
metic, nor of Miss True being the real teacher. 

“Going to school” meant something special 
to them, and their Teacher was some one very 
special. His picture was on the wall, and they 
often looked at it. He was teaching them how 
to make a happy world. That is even more 
important than those other things, isn’t it? 
For what good does it do to know how to spell or 
figure, if nobody is any happier for it? So when 
Miss True said to a child, ‘“ You are going to 
school, aren’t you)” it was no wonder that she 
smiled, for it meant that that child was learning 
how to live as the great Teacher, the greatest 
Teacher that ever lived, taught. 

You know, of course, that this school was in 


Happy Valley, and you will remember that there 
had come to that Valley a very learned man who, 
with his family, was in the habit of traveling 
about from place to place, making friends, 
gathering curios and collecting stories. The 
children called him the wise man, because he 
knew so much and told them so many wonderful 
stories. You will remember, too, that he was 
about to take another trip, and that for weeks 
the Happy Valley children had been making 
gifts for him to take to his friends elsewhere. 

Then came the exciting announcement that 
stirred the whole school and set every child to 
hoping and working. The wise man, who col- 
lected stories from every place he visited, said 
that the best story he had of Happy Valley was 
about this school, and that he wanted one of the 
children to go with him and help him tell the 
story! 

He and his family would be gone all summer, 
he said, and would visit children on the prairie, 
in the mountains, by the sea. People everywhere, 
he explained, wanted to be happy, but didn’t 
know how. Some of them had never heard of 
the great Teacher and had no idea how you could 
go to school to him. He had been watching 
this school and noticed how hard the children 
were trying to be kindly and self-controlled and 
obedient, and what a happy place this was 
making their town, and he had decided that one 
of them could tell the story much better than he 
could. 

‘“‘T leave it to you,” he ended, “‘ which child 
is best fitted to do this, and I shall be glad to 
pay that child, for it will be hard work.” 

Imagine the excitement! To have a chance 
to travel all summer in the wise man’s covered 
wagon and distribute the presents they had been 
making, and to tell about their school, and be 
earning money besides! Every single child want- 
ed to go, of course. Don thought he might be 
chosen, because he had worked hardest on the 
toys. 

“But that wouldn’t be telling how you could 
go to school to Jesus,” said Freddie. Freddie 
himself had started several toys, but soon tired 
of them and had finished nothing. 

“IT can tell stories fine,” Freddie went on; 
“T’d be a good one for that.” 


195 


196 


“T brought the most money for the picture,” 
Teddy Hollis reminded them. ‘“ That showed 
I must have liked the school pretty well.” 


But the others said that that didn’t show 
whether he could tell about the school best of 
any one. It ought to be, they thought, the one 
who knew the most. 


“T’ve been here every single day,” ventured 
one child, who had indeed been very regular, but 
who had paid little attention to what went on. 


“But you haven’t paid attention,” objected 
several, ‘‘so you  haven’t learned much. 
Oughtn’t it to be,’’ they asked Miss True, 
“ oughtn’t it to be the one who has learned most, 
not the one that’s been here most? ”’ 


Miss True and everybody agreed that the 
child who showed that he had learned the most 
while ‘“ going to school to Jesus” would be best 
fitted to make others understand what it meant. 
The wise man should judge just before he left. 

From that moment it seemed as if there was 
never a time when somebody was not looking 
over the pile of pictures in the corner and review- 
ing the stories of Jesus that went with them. 
Every child wanted to be sure he knew them as 
well as possible, for there wasn’t a single boy or 
girl who wasn’t hoping to be chosen for the 
trip. 

Now there are some children, you know, who 
can tell stories a great deal more easily than 
others. You could see at once, by listening to 
those gathered in the corner, and practising the 
stories on each other, just which ones the good 
story-tellers were. Freddie Thorpe, for instance, 
could tell the whole story the minute he saw the 
picture. So could Dorothy Fairchild. They 
did it well, too, putting in all the important 
parts, and without too many pauses. But 
Freddie went even further. He took his Bible 
and reviewed every one of the verses they had 
learned. He could recite the shepherd story, 
the story of the Wise-men, and some of the 
Psalms so fast you could hardly follow him. 
George Kling looked on him with great admira- 
tion. He felt that he knew what every single 
picture was about, but he had a dreadful time 
trying to tell of them to some one else. He 
seemed to feel the story instead of being able to 
tell it. And as for learning chapters by heart, 
that was never easy for him. He had to say 
them very slowly, and stop between the verses 


’ 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


to think about what came next. Freddie teased 
him a little about it. 

“Well, I know the stories just as well as you 
do,’ George insisted. 

“* Oho, listen to him! ”’ jeered Freddie. ‘ Yes, 
you do, yes, you do! Let’s hear you tell one. 
Here, tell this,” and he held up the picture of 
Jesus and the Man at the Pool of the Angel. 

“* Tt’s when he made that man believe he could 
walk if he’d only try,” said George. He knew 
the story perfectly well. 

* Well, tell it, tell the story,” insisted Freddie. 
But George didn’t know how to begin. 

** Well, tell this one.”’ Freddie held up a picture 
of Jesus teaching his disciples to pray. 

“ He’s telling them that if they pray they’ll 
keep close to God,” said George, ‘and then 
they'll be all right.” 

“ That isn’t a story,” laughed one of the girls. 
“What’s this?’ and she showed David sparing 
Saul’s life. 

“T don’t know how to start it,” said George 
helplessly, ‘“‘ but it’s that time when the king 
had been so mean to David, and tried to kill him 
and then David found him asleep one night 
and had a chance to get even and kill him and 
never touched him. He showed his self-con- 
trol all right.” George’s eyes shone. He had 
always liked that story. How he did admire 
David! 

‘““Aw, that’s a baby way to tell a story,” 
replied Freddie. ‘“‘ You ought to say, ‘ Once 
there was a king’—and tell his name and 
everything.” 

“ T’ve forgotten his name,” said George. 

“Well, that just shows!” said Freddie. ‘ Ill 
bet you can’t say the ninety-fifth Psalm by 
heart. You don’t know anything, any more 
than your little sister Lucy! ”’ 

George’s eyes began to blaze. 

“‘T know as much as you do, mister,” he said, 
doubling his fists. ‘‘ And you’d better be careful 
what you say ’round here if you don’t want to 
get in a fight.” 

“ Fight!” exclaimed Freddie  scornfully. 
“You can’t fight, either, any more’n a baby.” 

Now this was not true, and Freddie knew it 
was not. The first day George had come to 
school he had fought like a tiger, but since he 
had been “ going to school” he had tried to 
control himself, and had never been in a fight 
since. He had never wanted to be in one so 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE 


badly as today. Why should Freddie plague 
him? He wasn’t trying to get the prize away 
from Freddie. George had given up even 
hoping for the summer trip when he saw how 
much better the others were at telling the stories. 
But what if he couldn’t tell the stories? He 
knew them, and he had made more toys than 
Freddie had, and the minister had called him 
a carpet-sweeper because he was so particular 
to keep the church lawn clean. He had helped 
to plant a garden in back ‘of the church, too, and 
done more digging and weeding than any one 
else. He remembered how Freddie had shirked 
his share. And now Freddie was trying to make 
him appear stupid and cowardly before all the 
children. He clenched his fists tighter and 
started toward Freddie. Dorothy seized the 
pictures for fear they would be hurt, and was 
even taking down the picture of Jesus on the 
wall, when George suddenly remembered where 
he was. 

“ Please, God, help me not to be mad,” he 
thought, and turned away. 

“ Didn’t I tell you!” shouted Freddie trium- 
phantly. 

“Help me not to be mad, help me not to be 
mad,’ prayed George. “ Get out of my way!” 
he commanded gruffly as the children crowded 
between him and the door. 

“Can’t fight, can’t fight!’ came the taunts 
behind him. 

“Help me not to be mad, help me not to be 
mad,” he breathed, and rushed out of the door. 
He almost ran into the wise man, but instead of 
saying ‘‘ excuse me,” he was so busy thinking 
his prayer that he repeated that instead. “‘ Help 
_me not to be mad, help me not to be mad,” he 
said, and left the wise man to stare after him 
in amazement. 

George turned the corner of the church, and 
seeing the basement door open, and not knowing 
or caring where he went, if he could only be let 
alone, he tumbled down the steps into the big 
room where the class had been working on their 
toys. He went over and stood by those he had 
finished so carefully. It didn’t seem as though 
he could stand it, if Freddie won the prize to 
have him take his, George’s, gifts and distribute 
where he would. He would take them home and 
give them to Lucy, instead. He looked over 
toward Freddie’s pile. Not one toy finished. 
Several were begun, but nothing had been com- 


GREAT TEACHER 197 


pleted. That was like Freddie; he was always 
starting things he never finished. How George 
hated things that were left unfinished! It 
meant either that you were lazy, or that you 
weren’t clever or hadn’t grit enough to go on 
with what you started. If Freddie were chosen, 
he hoped the wise man wouldn’t see this work 
of his. It might look as though Freddie grew 
tired of everything that way — wouldn’t even 
stick to his story telling all summer. 

In the meantime the wise man had come to 
ask Miss True if it could be decided that after- 
noon which child was to take the trip with him. 
The children were all in a flutter. They hadn’t 
expected the test to come so soon. Each one 
wondered if he or she would surely show how 
well the lesson had been learned, 

Miss True looked around. “I think we're 
all here except George,” she said. ‘ When you 
go home to dinner, Dorothy, will you stop and 
tell him that it is to be decided this afternoon 
who shall go on the trip? ” ; 

“Where did he go?” asked the wise man, 
who had been wondering ever since George had 
bumped into him so unceremoniously, 

“Does anybody know?” asked Miss True, 
who had been out of the room when George 
disappeared. Freddie volunteered, 

“He was mad,” he began, but something in 
the wise man’s eyes stopped him, 

“What makes you think he was angry? ’’ the 
wise man asked. 

“Well,” hesitated Freddie, ‘he wanted to 
fight —”’ 

‘* Ah, so he had been fighting? ” 

“Well,” answered Freddie truthfully, ‘he 
didn’t really fight —”’ 

“Why not? Did somebody stop him? ” 

‘“ No,” cried the others, ‘‘ he stopped himself! ”’ 


“'That’s right,” agreed Freddie, 
already ashamed of his part. 

“Do you mind telling me how it happened? ” 
the wise man asked, and Freddie, now thoroughly 
ashamed, told the whole story likea man. 

“Thank you for telling me,” said the wise man 
at the end. But he seemed puzzled, 

“You say the whole quarrel was about who 
had learned most in this school. It is odd /—” 
and then he stopped. 

One by one the children Sorne to wonder if 
just knowing stories about Jesus, or learning 


who was 


198 


verses by heart, was after all the way to prove 
what they had learned in his school. 

Suddenly Freddie said, “‘ Say, it was my fault 
he got mad; and he used his self-control and I 
didn’t. I’m going to find him!” and he shot 
out of the door. 

But George couldn’t be found. He did not 
even come home to dinner and his mother was 
dreadfully worried. Everybody began to search. 
The wise man said he wanted the whole school 
present before he made his decision. Through 
the streets Miss True’s children went hunting 
for the lost boy. Nobody searched harder than 
Freddie, who began to wonder if George had 
gone off to the mountains where a bear would 
eat him, — and it would be all his fault for being 
so mean to him in the first place! 

Finally, when four o’clock came and George 
had still not been found, the children gathered 
together in their new school building to see what 
to do next. They had given up the search 
and trusted that the boy would turn up of him- 
self. The wise man listened to the children 
telling their stories and seemed very much 
pleased, but decided nothing. When they asked 
if he would like to see how many toys they 
had made for him to carry, he seemed even more 
pleased, and together they all went over to the 
church. As they drew near, all at once Miss 
True stopped and held up her finger. A sound 
was coming through the open basement door. 
The children listened breathlessly to the notes 
of their own work song: 


“Oh, work, work, work, 

And while you’re working sing, 

To sing a song will help the work along; 
So let your voices ring. 

And sing, 

Oh sing, sing, sing, 

And while you’re singing work, 

Take care, be true, in everything you do, 
To the finish, never shirk, 

But work, 

Oh, work, work, work —”’ 


“ tt’s George!” they whispered to each other. 

“We've found him in the church! Why 
didn’t we think of looking here? ” 

One ran off at once to tell George’s mother. 

Freddie rushed pell-mell down the steps, the 
rest. following. 

George turned around, apparently surprised. 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


‘ Hullo,” he greeted them cheerfully, but Freddie 
said nothing at all. He stood still, rooted to 
the spot with his eyes and mouth opened equally 
wide. 

For George was standing in front of a whole 
row of beautifully finished toys — Freddie’s toys, 
if you please — which he himself had started, 
and then quickly given up. In one hand George 
held the last, on which he was just putting the 
finishing touches of shellac. 

“Oh, my boy,” cried George’s mother, coming 
down the steps and rushing to him, “ how glad 
I am that you are found! Why didn’t you 
come home to dinner? I was so worried!” 

“Ts it dinner-time?’”’ asked George, surprised. 
‘I’m sorry, mother. You see, I had some work 
to do.” 

“Say!” exclaimed Freddie, who had now 
found his tongue. “I don’t care if he can’t 
tell one story. Mr. Wise Man, those are my 
toys he’s been working on all this time, after [ 
was so mean to him, too. I know the stories, 
but I only tell them. You can see George 
knows them better than I do by the way he 
helps, and doesn’t pay back, and uses his self- 
control and does things that Jesus would do!” 

There seemed to be nothing left for the wise 
man to decide. The choice seemed to be settled 
for him. 

‘Then you're all agreed,” he asked, ‘‘ that 
George Kling shows that he is best fitted to tell 
others how to go to school to the great Teacher? ”’ 

‘Yes, yes!’ came a perfect chorus, but what 
George did was to hug his mother and say, 
“QO mother, that means that I'll be earning 
more money for you and Lucy.” 


Report of School A 
The Tragedy of Karl’s ‘‘ Bible ” 

No one had taken such pains with his “* Bible ” 
as Karl. No one had so carefully matched his 
crayons to his wall-paper design, or been so neat 
about putting things together. Every day he 
added some new improvement. It was the day 
before the exhibit. Leader showed him her 
own book, which she had newly shellaced, cover 
decorations and all. She unwisely suggested 
Karl’s using the shellac in the same way on his. 

Karu (hesitating): Does it really make my 
book better? 

Leaver: You see mine. Of course don’t do. 
it unless you want to, but yours is so beautiful, 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


I like to think that it will stay so. Shellac will 
keep it better, besides making it shiny. 

Karl succumbed. But the first strokes showed 
the leader her mistake — too late. The decora- 
tion he had chosen for his cover was from a wall- 
paper border, blue, brown and with gold outlines. 
The shellac turned everything an ugly brown. 
Fortunately we had begun on the back cover. 
Karl kindly refrained from anathematizing the 
leader, but she herself was in despair. All Karl 
did was to disclaim any further interest in his 
** Bible.” 

Karu: I don’t take dot book! I don’t take 
dot book! Look at dot! Ah-h-h! (extreme dis- 
gust, but not a word about the leader!) 

Leaper: Karl, I’m just as sorry as I can be. 
It was my fault. I should have known better. 
What shall we do? 

Karu: I don’t take dot book. You can have 
it. I don’t want it no more. Look at dot! 

Leaver: But it’s only the back cover. If we 
can find some more paper, couldn’t you make a 
plain one like the others? 

Kart: Quick, where is there some more paper 
yet? (A search revealed none. It was late.) 

Leaver: Karl, if you can find a piece of paper 
somewhere, and will bring it to my house at 
seven o’clock I will give you some cardboard and 
you can use my own crayons to color it. 

Karu: I not know if I can find one. 
paste it? 

Leaver: I'll make some paste at home. 

Karu: How we shellac it? 

Leaver: I'll carry the jar home. 

Karu: How we get the holes punched? 

Leaper: You can do it yourself with my 
drill, or a gimlet. 

Karz: Allright. I come. 

He came, made a new cover and shellaced it. 
Leader arranged for him to come to the church 
next morning at eleven-thirty to see if his new 
back cover matched his old front one. He 
arrived at nine. Leader, busy, sent him away. 
He came at nine-fifteen, nine-thirty, ten and 
ten-forty-five. “I can work dis morning,” he 
protested. “I haff not anything to do!” But 
the leader had. Also she was putting off the 
evil hour. 

She knew that the new cover was not a success. 
The paper used was different, the coloring of the 
front cover impossible to match. Any other 
child would have been satisfied, but not Karl. 


How we 


199 


Kanu (after comparing the two covers): Ah — 
look at dot! Dot iss not like! What you tink, 
I take dot book? No, I don’t take dot book. 

Leaver: I’m sorry, Karl. I can see too, that 
they are not alike. But you know you chose the 
colors yourself. I had nothing to do with this 
mistake, did I? 

Karu: No, I make one mistake, you make 


anoder. But I won’t take dot book. Look at 
it, Miss Bradley! (almost in tears) 
Leaver: Karl, I have some extra heavy, 


beautiful material which I was saving to make a 
book for myself. It is too heavy for most chil- 
dren to work with. It isso beautiful and so much 
like leather that it deserves to be handled very 
carefully. If you still want to put hard work 
on some new covers, I will give you this. I 
should not give it to you, if you had not proved 
what a good, careful workman you are — nor if 
you had lost your temper yesterday. You were 
disappointed, and you used your self-control, 
and you work hard. 

Karu: Where is dot paper, Miss Bradley? 
I begin it now! What time is it? When can we 
finish it, Miss Bradley? At the next class, 


perhaps? 

Leaver: There are no more Saturday classes 
after today. 

Kart: You mean we come here no more on 
Saturday? 

Leaper: Our party closes the class. Didn’t 
you know? 

Kart: Ah! I not know—ah! Why you 


close, Miss Bradley? When it begins again? 
When school begins again, yet? Then how I 
make my book? 

By rapid work the covers were cut, glued on 
the boards, and left to stick until after the party. 
Whole-hearted Preparations 

Girls arrived before nine-thirty, including Mary, 
the little girl who had moved out of town after 
Christmas, and who could apparently imagine no 
better birthday present than a visit to Our Class. 
All brought lemon squeezers, squeezed every 
drop from two dozen lemons and one dozen 
oranges and stirred untiringly. General hand- 
washing beforehand. (Karl, later, “ Did Tina 
wash before she make dot lemonade? I saw her 
dis morning, and she had not washed yet. She 
was dirly.”) Children got out glasses and 
pitchers, washed strainer, lemon squeezers and 
knives, and cleaned up muss. Put finishing 


200 


touches on books, looked over charts and pictures. 

Florrie, who was to explain the picture gallery, 

was studying each one for the fortieth time. 
The boys came at two-fifteen to arrange the 

exhibit. 

The Exhibit 


Illuminated Bibles. On tables. Exhibited by 
Karl. 

Charts. ‘White Wings in New York; in 
Vermont;”’ “ Pictures of Our Class, taken to send 


friends in Virginia;” ‘‘ Pictures taken on Our 
Hikes.” On Screens. Exhibited by Betty, Tina, 
Elinor. 

Virginia Charts. On Screens. 
Marian, Mabel and Frankie. 

Picture Gallery. Across back of room. Ex- 
hibited by Florrie, Anne and John. 

Carpenter’s Bench. Used for toy making, 
now covered with traced patterns and left-over 
materials for Virginia children. Exhibited by 
Tommy. 

Toys for Virginia. 
Lawrence and Stuart. 

Map of Town with Key. On piano. Ex- 
hibited by the Junior artist. 

Scrap-books for Virginia. 
hibited by Junior girls. 

(Party caps. On children’s heads. 
by wearers!) 

Overheard at the Exhibit 

“ Lawrence, will you tell me about these books 
over here on this table) ” 

“Td be very glad to, Mrs. B., but I don’t 
happen -to have charge of this table. I am 
explaining the toys. I think if you ask Karl or 
Tina, they will be glad to tell you what you want 
to know.” 

‘We made them out of wrapping paper — ” 

‘These are the pictures we had taken to send 
to Virginia — their pictures are over there — ” 

“There aren’t very good roads down there. 
I don’t know if Miss Bradley’s automobile can 
go allthe way. This girl is sixteen and she never 
went to school until last year.” 

“Yes, I'll tell you that story. It’s about a 
man that had been sick thirty-eight years — 
This picture is my favorite one. It’s about kind- 
ness.” (It was the Good Samaritan.) 

“You know the wood that the church gave 
us — well, that’s what we made the toys out of. 
They’re for Virginia.” 

“Elsie made the map for us. All our houses 


Exhibited by 


On Table. Exhibited by 


On table. Ex- 


Exhibited 


AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


are on it. Here’s where I live. We're going to 
send it to Virginia — ”’ 
“Those spools are what we had left over from 
our furniture. We're going to send them to 
Virginia for their vacation school — those pat- 


terns, too. We traced them off for them.” 


Real Hosts and Hostesses 

The girls had taken charge of the lemonade 
and were in the kitchen with two helpers. The 
boys, evidently thinking that any sort of refresh- 
ments required chairs, rushed into the chapel 
to get them, and before the leader really knew 
what was going on the guests were all seated and 
the girls were passing the lemonade. Leader 
started the story. It was only fairly begun 
when two more guests arrived. In the interrup- 
tion which occurred the visitors were seated, 
helped to lemonade, and in the meantime two 
boys on their own initiative collected the empty 
glasses on a tray. The class clearly demon- 
strated its sense of responsibility through the 
rest of the program. The story proceeded. ~ 
Whenever a guest entered, one girl (a different 
one each time, perhaps, but never more than one) 
quietly rose, greeted the new-comer, showed him 
or her to a seat, and procured a glass of lemonade 
— unbelievably quiet, avoiding walking in front 
of people, — and the story-teller hardly noticed 
that her story was being constantly interrupted. 
The guests remarked later on this quiet efficiency 
and assumption of responsibility. | 

As the guests were leaving two boys emerged 
from the kitchen, beaming. 

LAWRENCE: Miss Bradley, we’ve washed all 
the glasses for you. That’s why we weren’t in 
here for the story! 

LEADER (gasping): But how did you get hot 
water? 

LAWRENCE: Oh, we didn’t have any, and as 
long as we didn’t we used cold! 

Tributes to Our Class 

FrANKIE’S Morner: I can’t be thankful 
enough for this class. I’m sorry it’s stopped, 
and only hope it will go on next year. 

FLorrie’s Mornuer: If the other children all 
think as much of their “‘ Bibles ” as Florrie does, 
they mean a lot. 

Mary: I’ve had a lovely birthday! I don’t 
see how you think of so many nice things, Miss 
Bradley. I wouldn’t think you could think of 
so many things. I know — Jesus tells you. 


mon. 


THIRTY-FIFTH SUNDAY 


FIRST DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Opening Service of Worship 


(Use songs and verses which are a part of the 
Children’s Day service.) 


FIRST CLASS PERIOD 


Reviewing an Experience Shared in Com- 
(Talk about the party or exhibit, if this 
took place during the week.) 


School A. LeEapEer: You know, yester- 
day I wasn’t quite sure whether you were 
being good hosts and hostesses or not. 
But Miss Fairfield told me what a good 
time she’d had and how nicely you’d all 
explained things to her. She said you 
greeted her at the door, Stuart (Stuart 
tried nol to look pleased) and Lawrence 
told her about the toys. 

Anne: I told her about the charts. 

Karu: I told her all about the books. 
I showed her dot new one. 

I'LorriEe: I showed her our pictures and 
told her some stories. 

Harrier: I showed her the map. 

LEapER: Then do you think we're 
better entertainers than we were last fall? 
Remember our teacher party? 

CHILDREN: Yes, oh, yes, we're lots 
better. 

LEADER: Do you think this class has 
shown any improvement in self-control 
this year? 

Sruart (promptly): No! 

OruErs: Yes! 

Leaver: Stuart, I’m afraid some of us 

 haven’t, — but some of us have. 

Sruart: O Miss Bradley, I had a fine 
chance to use my self-control the other 
day ‘Two of the boys got me up ina tree 
and kept me there and one of ’em held on 
to my leg and one on to my head, and hurt 
like sixty. 

Leaper: And how did you use your 
self-control? 


May 


STuaRT: Well, I never did a thing to 
"em, nor said anything, either! 

ANNE: I use mine lots more than I used 
to. 

Leaper: How, Anne? 

ANNE: Oh, when I want to hit back, or 
some one wants me to do things I don’t 
want to. 

Awotuer: Frankie used his self-control, 
didn’t he, that day Florrie hit him? (See 
Report of School A, Twenty-first 
Weekday.) 

Awnotuer: Yes, he wanted to hit her. 

Leader took this opportunity to tell 
about Karl’s example both of self-control 
and patient perseverance. Children 
greatly admired the book. 

FrankIE: Yes, but I wouldn’t have 
used my self-control, Miss Bradley, if you 
hadn’t helped me. 

LEADER: When do you mean, Frankie? 

Frankie: That time when Florrie hit 
me. I was just going for her, but you 
stopped me and took me out in the kitchen, 
remember? 

Leaver: That’s just what teachers are 
for, Frankie. That is what our great 
Teacher is for. Every time if we let him, 
he helps us. That is why God sent him. 


SECOND DEPARTMENTAL PERIOD 
Worship and Fellowship 
(Use material from the Children’s Day service 
which will continue the thought of Jesus in- 
creasing “‘in wisdom and stature, and in favor 
with God and man.”’’) 


SECOND CLASS PERIOD 


A New Poem. (Explain that instead of a new 
story today you have written on the board a 
new poem for the last page in the books. The 
verses show how children “ who walk in Jesus’ 
way’ may grow in wisdom and stature and in 
favor with God and man. Let the class copy 
them and give as an accompanying picture 


201 


202 AT SCHOOL WITH THE GREAT TEACHER 


“The Good Samaritan,” or any illustration of 
Jesus helping.) 


Children who walk in Jesus’ way, 

Follow his teachings day by day, 

Growing in strength through work and play — 
Children who walk in Jesus’ way. — 


Children who choose him as their guide 
Follow his path, whate’er betide, 
Letting his word their way decide, 
Children who choose him as their guide. 


Children who march where he shall lead 
Shall be like him in thought and deed, 
Loving and helpful in each need, 
Children who march where he shall lead. 


(The foregoing verses are adapted for our use 
from the song, “ Children Who Walk in Jesus’ 
Way,” by Nancy Byrd Turner, in Song and Play 
for Children. 

(if for any reason the story, “ The Boy Who 
Learned Most,” was not told at the party, tell 
it now.) 


THIRTY-FIFTH WEEKDAY 


june 


Final Preparations for Children’s Day 

If the following Sunday is Children’s Day, 
and the special program for friends was given 
last week, the class will meet today to make the 
final preparations for the Children’s Day service. 
A hike to gather flowers for decorations would 
be a happy way to end the weekday sessions of 
the class. 

If the gifts made for other children have not 
been packed and sent during the week, this 
should be attended to. 


Report of School A 

The Friendship Project 

Primary and Junior children who gathered at 
church to go over Children’s Day service found a 
surprise from Virginia. Pages of pressed and 
mounted wild flowers from the Blue Ridge were 
eagerly pored over, as the Vermont children 
discovered flowers familiar to their mountains but 
bearing unfamiliar names. The pages were put 
between Karl’s discarded covers, and proudly 
displayed. The gift furnished the needed im- 
petus for the girls who had been pressing flowers 
all the spring. Anne had made a cover and had 
the pages ready. The others now brought their 
wild flowers, mounted and labeled them, ready 
for the leader to take to Virginia. 


Leaver: I wish the Virginia children could 
see you looking at their flowers. 

Cuitp: Take our picture! They'll see how we 
look. 

Leaver: All right, and then [ll take another 
of you mounting flowers for them. 

(Leader a week later eagerly produced this 
photograph in response to a Virginia girl’s 
greeting: ‘‘ Did you get the flowers? ’’) 

Cup: We never sent them our White Wings 
picture. Will you take that with you too? 

Leaver (doubtfully): Do you think they’d be 
interested in that? But I will if you want me 
to. 

(This picture, by the way, led to a similar 
cleaning up of the church property in Virginia 
Hollow.) 

Curitp: Don’t forget to take our party caps. 

LeapEr: Children, if they have a party when 
I’m there [’ll take their pictures wearing the 
caps! 

(She did and the photograph of Virginia 
children in Vermont caps and playing with Ver- 
mont toys gave Our Class a real thrill. Leader 
experienced a like thrill on seeing the photographs 
with ages and addresses of each member of Our 
Class carefully mounted by the Girls’ Club and 
hanging in a conspicuous place in the Virginia 
teacher’s home.) 


THIRTY-SIXTH SUNDAY 
June [Children’s Day] 
(The service will be prepared at least in part by the third grade.) 


Report of School A 
Our Class in the Service 

The following contribution by the children 
fitted into the service, ‘‘ The Church and the 
Children,” by Elizabeth Colson. (See ‘ Chil- 
dren’s Day Service Grows Naturally,” Thirty- 
third Sunday.) 

Song. ‘ This is God’s House.” 

Original Prayer Response. “‘ We love thee, 
heavenly Father.” 

Seng. Welcome to babies brought for bap- 
tism. 

Presentation of Picture. 
“ Christ in the Temple.’’) 

Song. ‘“ Gentle Child of Nazareth.” 

Song. “ Tell Me the Stories of Jesus.”’ 

Offering Song. “ God’s Children Live in 
Many Lands.” 

Qur Class through the Summer 

Joun (ihe day the picture came): Is that all the 
bigger it is! 

Leaver: That’s the five-dollar size. Alto- 
gether you earned only six dollars and a quarter. 
That wasn’t nearly enough for the nine-dollar 
size. ERR. bie, 

ANNE (one of the largest contributors): We 
could earn some more this summer, and change it. 

STUART (largely): Let’s. This one looks like 
a peanut. 


(Hofmann’s 


Cup: I had a letter from a girl in Virginia! 

AnotHeR: My mother took my picture in 
front of our camp to send that girl that wrote me. 
Some time will you show me which one she is 
in the party picture? - 

Berry (on Our Class’ farewell hike the day 
before September promotion day): Miss Bradley, 
Stuart’s got a picture in his book you never 
gave me. 

LeEapER (chagrined): I’m sorry, Betty! Oh, 
but I have a surprise for you all that will make 
up for it. I am going to the very land where 
Jesus lived and I can mail you some post-cards 
from there for your books. 

CHILDREN: Oh, from Nazareth? Jerusalem? 

FLorrié (practically): You can get me some 
stamps! 

Leaver: If I attach extra pages to each of 
your diplomas tomorrow, will you put them in 
your books and save them for those pictures? 
Will we! Well, I guess! 

Cup (al the dish pan singing Our Class’ 
work song): ‘* Work, work, work, and while 
you’re working, sing!” 

ANNE (at camp): I brought my “ Bible” up. 
On Sundays I read “Children Who Walk in 
Jesus’ Way.” 


CHILDREN: 


204 


INDEX 


Abbott, Jacob, Rollo’s Vacation, 148 

Adjustment of programs, 39, 62, 88 

Alden, Raymond McDonald, Why the Chimes Rang, 51, 62, 146 

Anagrams, 24 _ 

Applegarth, Margaret T., Missionary Stories for Little 
Folks, 132 

Appreciation lessons, ‘‘God’s Children Live in Many Lands,” 
suggested, 143; “I Cannot Do Great Things for Him,”’ 
suggested, 181; ‘‘If I Had Been a Shepherd Boy,” 59, 62; 
“O Little Town of Bethlehem,” 50; ‘Tell Me the Stories 
of Jesus,’ suggested, 98; ‘‘The Children’s Service,”’ 
suggested, 181; ‘‘When We Were Little Children,”’ sug- 
gested by children, 24 

Assistants, 48-49; coaching, 44; problem of, 61 

Bailey, Carolyn S., Firelight Stories, 11; Stories Children 
Need, 148; Tell Me Another Story, 43, 52 

Bailey and Lewis, The Children’s Hour, 6 

Bancroft, Jessie H., Games for the Playground, Home, School 
and Gymnasium, 90 

Bible material used, Gen. 1:1, ‘‘In the beginning,’’ 18; Ps. 
54: 4a, ‘‘God is my helper,’”’ 113, 116; Ps. 56:3, ‘‘What 
time I am afraid,’”’ 132; Ps. 74:16, ‘‘The day is thine,” 
132; Ps. 92:4, “Thou, Lord, hast made me glad,’ 132; 
Ps. 95, ‘‘Oh, come, let us sing,’”’ 38, 41, 45, 118, 174; Ps. 
100, ‘‘Make a joyful noise,’ 41, 45; Ps. 100: 4, ‘Enter 
into his gates,’’ 18, 24, 45, 188; Ps. 109: 26, ‘‘Help me,”’ 
132: Ps. 118: 24, ‘‘This is the day,” 24; Ps. 122:1, “I 
was glad,’’ 1, 18, 99, 118, 183; Ps. 136:1-9, ‘‘Oh, give 
thanks,”’ 41, 45, 87; Ps. 147:17, ‘‘He casteth forth his 
ice,’ 146; Ps. 147: 18, ‘‘He sendeth forth his word,’ 146; 
Ps. 147: 18, ‘‘He causeth his wind,’’ 146; Prov. 16: 32b, 
“He that ruleth his spirit,’ 91, 95, 100, 113; Eccl. 11:7, 
“For truly the light is sweet,’’ 146; Song of Sol. 2: 11, 12, 
“For, lo, the winter is past,’’ 146; Habak. 2:20, ‘‘The 
Lord is in his holy temple,’’ 100; Zech. 8: 16b, ‘‘Speak 
ye every man the truth,’ 19; Matt. 2: 1-12, Wise-men, 
48, 59, 113; Matt. 5:8, ‘‘Blessed are the pure in heart,”’ 
102; Matt. 6:9-13, the Lord’s Prayer, 41, 118, 127, 
132, 133; Matt. 6: 28b, ‘Consider the lilies,’’ 167; Matt. 
10: 8b, ‘‘Freely ye received,” 7, 46, 47; Matt. 22: 39b, 
“Thou shalt love thy neighbor,’’ 19; Matt. 28: 6b, ‘‘He 
is risen,’”’? 118, 165; Mark 16:1-7, Easter story, 167; 
Luke 2: 8-20, shepherds, 48, 59, 62, 113; Luke 2:49b, 
“Knew ye not that I must be,’’ 106, 112, 113; Luke 
2:52, “Jesus increased in wisdom,’’ 201; Luke 6:31, 
Golden Rule, 12, 32, 60, 113, 186; Luke 22: 19c, ‘‘This 
do in remembrance of me,’ 7, 42, 128; John 8: 7b, 
“Whoever is without sin,’’ 17, 28, 113; Gal. 6:3, 4, 
proving one’s work, 77; Rev. 1: 18b, ‘‘Behold, I am alive 
for evermore,’’ 160, 165, 167; see also Stories, Bible 

“Bibles,’’ see Note-books 

Birthdays, discussion of, 4; Mary’s birthday present, 199, 
200; service for, 4-5; song for, 5; story for, 4 

Blackboard, aid in preparing programs, 7, 20, 30; aid in 
teaching, 5, 12, 18, 20, 59, 73, 77, 95, 98, 100, 114, 120, 126 

Blotters, 31 

Blue-prints, of pressed flowers and ferns, 139 

Book of Knowledge (The), 53 

Buzz, arithmetic game, 30 


Cabot, Ella Lyman, Ethics for Children, 148 

Calendar-charts, reasons and suggestions for, 74, 77-78; 

i. Teports on, 79, 83, 91, 94; suggestion for C for control, 
95, 101 

Charts, for exhibit, 189, 191, 200 

Children’s Day, see Worship services planned by children 

Christian flag, children’s responses, 43, 142, 144, 149, 157; 
Florrie’s paper flags, 134, 1388, 142; pins, 157, 168, 187; 
reference to, 168; salute, 62, 167; use of, 43, 62 

Christmas, 48-73; costumes, 52, 53, 61, 63, soiling, 64; hand- 
work, 48-49, 57-58, 61, 62, 63, 65, 67; home project, see 
Saving time for mothers; mothers’ meeting, 52-53; 
poem, ‘If [Had Been a Shepherd Boy,’’ 59, referred to, 


49, 62, 65, 113; program, 64-65, shared with old soldiers, 
66; program planning, 48, 49, 50, 51, 53, 59, 60, 61, 
62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 73; songs referred to: ‘‘Away in a 
Manger,” 60, ‘‘Hearken, ye Children,’ 51, ‘‘Holy Night,” 
49, 59, 62, 65, ‘‘Noel,’’ 59, 65, ‘‘Oh, Come, All Ye Faith- 
ful,” 65, “‘O Little Town of Bethlehem,”’ 48, 49, 50, 51, 62, 
64, 109, ‘‘What Can I Give Him,” 62, ‘‘While Shepherds 
Watched,” 59, 62, 65; stories: ‘‘Freely Ye Received, 
Freely Give,” 46-48, ‘“‘I Love You, Mother,”’ referred to, 
62, 78, “Mrs. Fairchild’s Christmas Present,’’ 54-57, 
“The Great Walled Country,” referred to, 51, ‘““The Jar 
of Rosemary,” referred to, 60, ‘‘The Magic Christmas 
Tree,’’ referred to, 62, ‘‘The Spirit of St. Nicholas,’’ 69- 
72, ‘“The Three Bags of Gold,’’ 68-69, ‘‘Why the Chimes 
Rang,”’ referred to, 62 

Church, service for, 6, 152, 153, 154, 157, 159, 176, suggestion, 
177, 179-180, 184, suggestion, 185, 187, 189, 192, 204; 
visits to auditorium, 6-7, for appreciation, 41-42, 43, 152 

Colson, Elizabeth, Little Neighbor Stories, 123; The Church 
and the Children, 204. 

Communion, a lost opportunity, 84, followed up, 128; interest 
in communion table, 7, 42; picture, 83 

Comstock, Anna Botsford, Handbook of Nature Study, 6, 85 

Cooperation, Church-school superintendent’ s—36, 62, 153, 191; 
Day-school teachers’—at party, 35; help of music super- 
visor, 20, 22, 23, 24, 29, 50; hiking, 187; in sharing 
stories, 6; reason for, X-XI; Minister’s—in appreciation 
of children’s effort, 157, 159; in Palm Sunday prepara- 
tions, 152, 153; in Thanksgiving service, 39, 41-42, 43; 
in White Wings activity, 179; Mothers’—30, 35-36, 44, 
52-53, 63, 134, 142, 169, 185, 204; by appreciation and 
reports of children’s response to class teachings, 44, 52-53, 
63, 94, 124, 154, 169, 183, 200; remarks on, XI 

Costumes, for Christmas program, 52, 53, 61, 64; for teachers’ 
party, 21 

Council, see Self-government 

Courtesy, Florrie’s, 142; Frankie’s, shaming leader, 63; in 
games, 11; recognition of, 79; Stuart’s, in the woods, 40; 
to guests, 36, 101, 200, 201 

Criticisms, adults’, 3, 49, 93, 94, 131; children’s, 116, 143-144, 
149, 159; see also Projects and Self-control 


‘Danielson, Frances Weld, Little Animal Stories, 87 


Danielson and Conant, Song and Play for Children, 102, 110, 
148, 181, 202; Songs for Little People, 1, 18, 24, 25, 32, 47, 
79, 102, 104, 152, 157, 165, 181, 185 

Day-school teachers, appreciation of, gift-making, 31; in 
class work or worship services, 18, 24; parties, 16, 30-31, 
35, 95; prayers, 10; 32; 41; songs, 17, 20, 22, 23, 187; 
stories: ‘‘How Schools Came to Happy Valley,’’ 8-10, 
“In Happy Valley,” 2-4, ‘“‘The Fairy Godmother’s Gifts,” 
12-16, retold, 35 

Disorder, children’s criticisms of, 90, 95, 116; children’s 
remedy for, 109; connected with Christian flag, 62; disci- 
pline in department, 93; discussion of, 30-31; effort to 
overcome, 99-100; preceding Christmas program, 64; 
suggestions offered, 94; while rehearsing, 63 

Dramatization, child’s response, 19; impersonation, 19, 25, 
59, 88-89, 91, 125, 185; impromptu, 51, 88-89, 125, 191; 
pantomime, 157; playlet, 21, 30-31, 35-36; story-playing, 
37, 61, 155; suggestions, 87; tableaux, 48, 49, 53, 61, 
63, 64, 65, 66; through song, 51 


Easter, children’s responses, 157, 165; pre-Easter teaching, 
146, 155-157, 158; program, see Worship services planned 
by children; rebus letter, 159; songs, 146, 157, 165, 167, 
‘174, 175; stories: ‘‘A Lesson in Faith,’’ 160-161, ‘‘Peter’s 
Lie,” 174-175, ‘‘The Boy Who Discovered Spring,” 
referred to, 146, ‘‘The Caterpillar’s Journey,’’ 161-162, 
“The Easter Story,’’ 165-167, ‘‘The Garden of Joseph of 
Arimathea,”’ referred to, 167, ‘‘The Story of Jesus’ Last 
Days on Earth,’’ 155-156, ‘‘What the Grub Found Out,”’ 
162-164; verses, see Bible material used 

Exhibit, 189-190, 191, 195-200, 201 


205 


206 


Games, a teaching method, 24, 30-31; exercising self-control, 
191; getting cooperation in, 21, 31, 43, 66, 90; out-of- 
door, 6, 134; program for party, 95; situations, 11; see 
also Bancroft, Geister, Perkins and Danielson, Rich- 
ardson 

Geister, Edna, Ice-Breakers, 90 

Gibson, William Hamilton, Sharp Eyes, 85 

Greatness, discussion of, 81, 89, 114; dramatization, 88-89; 
stories: ‘‘How the Disciples Learned to be Great,” 81-83, 
retold, 87, Johnny Blossom, referred to, 90, ‘The Greatest 
Animal,’’ 87 


Halos, child’s idea of, 89; explanation of, 93 

Handwork, see Blotters, Blue-prints, Charts, Christmas, 
Invitations; John’s suggestions for old soldiers, 40; see 
Lanterns, Map making, Note-books, Paper money, 
Party caps, Place cards, Posters, Scrap-books, Spatter 
work, Stocking dolls and cats, Toy making, Valentines, 
Wands 

Hartshorne, Hugh 8., Manual for Training in Worship, 45, 
114; Stories for Worship and How to Use Them, 45 

Hikes, 5, 6, 40, 85-86, 134, 139, 143, 154, 159, 169, 184, 187; 
planning, 77, 79 

Hodges, George, When the King Came, 1438, 151 

Home projects, bringing a happy New Year into our homes, 
74, 77, 78, 79, 83, 91; saving time for mothers, 52, 54-57, 
58, 59, 61, 62, 68, 67, 68, 73, 78 

Hosts and hostesses, discussion in connection with New 
Year plans, 77; exhibit, 200, 201; exhibit planning, 191; 
party for day-school teachers, 35-36; party for school- 
mates, 101 

Hunting, Harold B., Stories of Brotherhood, 179 


Inattention, 9, 44; children’s criticisms, 116; during worship 
service, 62; getting cooperation, 21; telling versus read- 
ing stories, 144 

International Graded Lessons, 18; picture sets, 2, 25, 34, 46, 
50, 110, 126, 132, 181; Primary Teacher’s Text Books, 43, 
15d e157 

Invitations, 30, 34 


Jesus as Teacher, as a child, 102, 118; children’s responses, 
4,8, 10, 19, 46, 98, 117, 126, 192; discussion of, 2, 18, 32, 
46, 57, 62, 85-86, 99, 146, 201; dramatization, 19, 88-89, 
125, 185; on calling names, 43; on cooperation, 11-12; 
on entertaining, 99, 102; on hiking, 79, 85-86, 134, 144; 
on prayer, 126, 127, 182; pictures, 19, 28, 32, 41, 57, 64, 
79, 93, 98, 99, 102, 144, 146, 149, 177, 193; poems, 25, 
102, 110, 112; songs: ‘‘Blessed are the pure in heart,” 
104; ‘“‘Gentle Child of Nazareth,” 119, referred to, 110, 
113, 114, 125, 143, 204; ‘Jesus, Friend of Little Children,” 
referred to, 19, 25; ‘‘Lord, Who Lovest Little Children,”’ 
102, 110, 112, referred to, 118, 125, 174; ‘Tell Me the 
Stories of Jesus,’’ 87-88, referred to, 98, 102, 110, 1138, 
114, 118, 126, 131, 155, 157,174, 181, 185, 190, 204; ‘“‘The 
Golden Rule,’’ 32, referred to, 60, 79, 99; stories: ‘‘Freely 
Ye Received, Freely Give,’’ 46-48, ‘‘How Jesus Used 
His Secret Power,’’ 120-122, ‘‘How the Disciples Learned 
to be Great,’’ 81-83, ‘‘In Happy Valley,’ 2-4, ‘Jesus at 
a Party,’’ 98-99, ‘‘Jesus in His Father’s House,’’ 104-106, 
“The First Four Pupils in Jesus’ School,’’ 32-34, ‘‘The 
Secret Power of Jesus,’”’ 118-120, ‘“‘The Story of George 
Kling,’’ 25-29 

Jones, Rufus, The Boy Jesus and His Companions, 32, 174 


Kingdom of God, children’s responses, 133; conversation, 132, 
133, 135, 143, 182-183; dramatization, 88; stories: ‘‘A 
Man Who Wanted to See Jesus,’’ 136-138, Bartimzus, 
referred to, 143, ‘‘The City Wall,’”’ 135-136, ‘‘The Golden 
Touch,”’ referred to, 148, ‘The Happiest Kingdom,” 
129-131, referred to, 135 


Lanterns, 145 
Leyda, Ida F., Melodies, 157 
Lindsay, Maud, The Story-Teller, 60 


INDEX 


Magic writing, 30, 35 

Making amends, $9, 134, 138, 142, 147, 154, 168 

Manila envelopes, for carrying ‘‘Bibles,” 113 

Map making, 145, 147, 191, 200 

Missions, 79, 177; pictures, 113, 139, 158, 202; project in 

- friendship, 83, 109, 123, 145, 147, 154, 181, 190, 200, 203, 

204; song, ‘‘God’s Children Live in Many Lands,” 
referred to, 113, 143, 146, 181, 189; stories: ‘‘Freely 
Ye Received, Freely Give,’’ 46-48, referred to, 189, 
“How the Artist Forgot Four Colors,” referred to, 132, 
143, ‘Jemima Corn-cob,”’ referred to, 123, ‘“The Magic 
Christmas Tree,” referred to, 62; worship, 143, 146 

Mothers’ Day, child’s response, 185; program, 185 


National Child Welfare Association, 139 

Nature Magazine, 85 

Nature material, use of, 1, 5, 6, 8, 18, 32, 40, 77, 85, 87, 98, 134, 
142, 146, 187, 189; Bible verses, 85: birds, Ps. 50: lla; 
104: 12; Matt. 6:26; ice, Job 38: 30; rain, Ps. 147: 7, 8; 
Isa. 44:14b; Joel 2:23; snow, Job 37:6; Ps. 147: 16; 
Isa. 55:10; spring, Ps. 147:18; Song of Sol. 2:11, 12; 
sun, moon and stars, Gen. 1:16; Ps. 74: 16; 136: 7, 8, 9; 
Eccl. 11:7; winter, Ps. 74:17b. Bible verses, 139: 
birds, Gen. 1:20; Ps. 50: 11a; 84: 3a, b; 104:12; Matt. 
6:26; rain, Ps. 147:7, 8, 18b; Isa. 44:14b; Joel 2: 23; 
spring, Song of Sol. 2: 11-13; Luke 8:5a; 146; songs: 
“All Things Bright and Beautiful,” referred to, 98, 189, 
‘Autumn Day,’ referred to, 7, 8, 32, ‘‘For, lo, the Winter 
is Past,’’ referred to, 146, 174, ‘‘Sing, Ye Happy Children,” 
referred to, 189, ‘‘The Alder by the River,” referred to, 
146, 189, ‘‘We Plough the Fields and Scatter,” referred 
to, 37, 45, ‘“‘We Thank Thee, oh, Our Father,”’ 1, referred 
to, 5, 6, 8; stories: ‘‘A Lesson in Faith,’’ 160-161, 
“Goldenrod and Aster,’’ referred to, 6, 7, 8, ‘““The Boy 
Who Discovered Spring,’ referred to, 146, 158, “The 
Caterpillar’s Journey,’ 161-162, ‘‘The Discovery of 
Happy Valley,’ 37-39, referred to, 40, 45, ‘‘The Quails,”’ 
96, referred to, 90, 95, 101, ‘‘What the Grub Found 
Out,’’ 162-164 

New Year, calendar-charts, 77-78, 79, 83, 91, 94; child’s 
response, 78; prayers, 79, 91; stories: ‘‘Happy Valley’s 
New Year,” 74-76, ‘‘“How the New Year Law Worked,” 
107-109, ‘‘The Twelve Treasure-Boxes,’’ 79-81 

Non-cooperation, attempts to overcome, 11, 21, 31, 43, 63, 66, 
73, 90, 95, 158, 159, 169 

Note-books (‘‘Bibles’’), 7, 17, 67, 100-112, 113, 114, 116, 117, 
120, 127, 131, 1382, 145, 153, 158, 159, 165, 169, 189, 190, 
191, 198-199, 200, 203, 204; story suggesting, “The 
Monk’s Bible,’’ 110-112, referred to, 118, retold, 131 


Offering, 1, 5, 7, 24, 32, 41, 48, 59, 62, 118, 177, 189, 204 
Outlook, The, 68 


Palm Sunday, 153, 154, 155-157 

Paper money, 57, 58, 62, 67, 73 

Parties, for schoolmates, 53, 77, 90, 95, 96, 98, 99, 101, 102; 
for teachers, 16-17, 20, 21, 30, 31, 35-36; program, 95; 
stories in preparation for: ‘‘The Party,’’ 96-97, referred 
to, 90, 95, ‘‘ The Quails,”’ 96, referred to, 90, 95, 101 

Party caps, 90, 95, 109, 200, 203 

Paying back, 17, 34, 51, followed up, 60, 85; stories: Johnny 
Blossom, referred to, 90, ‘‘The Story of George Kling,” 
25-29 

Perkins, Jeanette E., The Rest of the Family, 19 

Perkins and Danielson, The Mayflower Program Books, 11, 43, 
44, 48, 51, 57, 60, 123, 132, 139 

Pictures, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 11, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 27, 28, 32, 34, 41, 
43, 46, 48, 49, 50, 51, 53, 57, 59, 61, 62, 63, 64, 79, 87, 93, 
98, 99, 102, 110, 112, 118, 114, 120, 126, 182, 134, 135, 
139, 146-147, 149, 151, 153, 155, 157, 158, 165, 169, 177— 
179, 181, 185, 189, 191, 192, 193, 195, 200, 202, 203, 204; 
aid in preparing services, 46, 49, 53, 64; children’s re- 
sponses to, 46, 79, 126,181; gallery, 87, 132, 135, 146, 153, 
158, 181, 185, 200; gift, 177-179, 185, 189, 190, 191, 195, 
200, 204; note-books, 113; suggested by children, 8, 149; 
with songs, 50, 59, 62, 87, 98, 157; with stories, 2-3, 4, 
25, 27, 28, 43, 57, 83, 120, 146, 151, 155, 157, 165, 169, 179, 


INDEX 


181, 192, 200; see also International Graded Lessons, 
Missions, National Child Welfare Association, Wilde’s 
Bible Pictures 
Pilgrim Elementary Teacher (The), 20, 53, 62 
Place cards, 43, 44 
Planning programs, see Planning weekday programs, Worship 
services planned by children 
Planning weekday programs, 5, 7, 8; exhibit, see Exhibit; 
for old soldiers, 40, 63, 66; for schoolmates’ party, 90, 
95, 96, 98, 99; for teachers’ party, 20, 30, 31, 35; parties 
suggested, 5 
Poems: 
“A Song about Teachers,” 20 
“‘An Open Secret,’’ referred to, 146 
“Back of the Loaf,” referred to, 37 
“Children Who Walk in Jesus’ Way,’’ 202, referred to, 204 
“Father, Bless the Gifts We Bring Thee,” 1 
“Gentle Child of Nazareth,’ 118 
““Hosanna,”’ referred to, 158 
“Tf I Had Been a Shepherd Boy,” 59, referred to, 49, 62, 
65, 113 
“Lord, Who Lovest Little Children,’’ 102, 110, 112 
“My God, I thank thee,’’ referred to, 125 
“O teachers dear, you help us so,”’ 20 
“Since my heavenly Father,” 24 
“Sometimes I say an extra prayer,’ 120 
“‘Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,’’ 87-88, referred to, 159 
“The First Children’s Day,’ 25, referred to, 87, 185, 189 
“The Goldenrod is Yellow,’’ referred to, 7, 8 
“There Was a King in Nazareth,’’ 165, referred to, 174 
“This is God’s House,’’ referred to, 185 
“We Thank Thee, oh, Our Father,’’ 1, referred to, 5 
“We Would See Jesus,’’ 143 
“When Jesus Was a Little Lad,” 102, referred to, 143 
Posters, 61, 62 
Poulsson, Emilie, Johnny Blossom, 90, 192 
Prayer, children’s responses, 126, 127, 142; discussion of, 79, 
125-127, 134, 135, 143-144; dramatization bringing out 
Jesus’ teaching on, 125; Florrie’s idea of, 94, followed up, 
115-116, 118-122, 125-127; of adults with children, 1, 
5, 7, 10, 16-17, 24, 32, 37, 45, 59, 60, 68, 79, 91, 99, 106, 
114, 136, 183; preparation for program, 64, 168; stories: 
“How Jesus Used His Secret Power,’’ 120-122, ‘‘The 
Secret Power of Jesus,’’ 118-120, Washington praying, 
“The Wise Man’s Pack,’ 115-116; suggestions by chil- 
dren for, 19, 32, 41, 120, 133, 146, 189; the Lord’s Prayer, 
45, 132, 133, 189 
Pressed flowers, interchange of, 139, 184, 187, 203 
Projects, bringing a happy New Year into our homes, see 
Home projects; care for church, 159, 176, 179-180, 183, 
184, 185, 187, 192; Christmas program, see Worship 
services planned by children; criticism of: Christmas 
service, 68, 73, Easter service, suggested, 181, exhibit, 
201, party for schoolmates, 90, 102, Sunday service, 
12, Thanksgiving worship service, 48; exhibit, see 
Exhibit; friendship, see Missions; party for schoolmates, 
see Parties; saving time for mothers, see Home projects; 
teachers’ party, see Parties; Thanksgiving worship 
service, see Worship services planned by children 
Pussy willows, gifts of, 142, 145, 154, 157 


Quarantine, 128, 145, 147, 153, 154, 186 

Quarreling, averted, 40, 91, 109; stories: ‘The Gold Bugs,” 
suggested, 11, ‘‘The Quails,’”’ 96, referred to, 90, 95, 101 

Questionable language, 40, 43, 79, 85, 182 


Rebus letter, 158, 159-160 

Rehearsing, 7, 18, 20, 30-31, 35, 39, 40, 41-42, 43, 61, 62, 63 
158, 191, 201, 203 

Responsibility, 24, 30, 35, 36, 41, 90, 95, 101, 102, 157, 199-200 

Retelling stories, 7, 8, 16, 18, 19, 21, 32, 35, 87, 113, 131, 146, 
181, 185; discussion of, 29; through impersonation, 51, 
59, 64, 66, 88-89, 125 

Richardson, Norman E., The Church at Play, 11 


Santa Claus, children’s belief in, 49, 53, 61, 72-73; children’s 
responses, 72-73; stories: ‘‘The Child Who Saw Santa 


207 


Claus,’ referred to, 52, ‘‘The Spirit of St. Nicholas,”’ 
69-72, ‘The Three Bags of Gold,’ 68-69 
Saving time for mothers, hinting to mothers, 52-53; leading 
to New Year calendar-charts, 74, 77; plans, 57, 59, 61, 
67; reports, 58, 61, 62, 63, 68, 73, 78; story, ‘‘Mrs. Fair- 
child’s Christmas Present,’’ 54-57, referred to, 67, 68 
School, a universal experience, 2-4, 6, 7, 8, 24; Happy Valley 
school, 8-10, 29; reference to songs, poems or conversa- 
tion used in, 5, 7, 50; visits to, X 
School with the great Teacher, 2-4, 7, 11-12, 17, 19, 24, 27,. 
29, 32, 43, 57, 64, 79, 83, 85-86, 93, 98-99, 102, 117, 118, 
126, 127, 142, 144, 146, 193; children’s responses, 2, 4, 
7, 8, 19, 46, 64, 98, 117, 126, 192 
Scrap-books, 78, 147, 200 
Self-control, Bible verse, ‘‘He that ruleth his spirit,’”’ 95; 
discussion of, 66, 95, 98, 116-117; instances of, 36, 
followed up, 40, 44, 49, 58,-67, 101, 102, 109, 113, 122, 123, 
201; loss of, 93, 123, 124, 148-149; prayer for, 114; 
recognition of, 93, 102, 109, 124, 144, 189; resolves to 
use, 99, 114, 117, 187; stories: incident of child radiating 
happiness, 91, ‘‘One of the Crowd,” referred to, 40, ‘‘The 
Magic Mask,”’ 92-93; use of deaf and dumb sign, C, 95, 
101, 149; worship service on, 114 
Self-zgovernment, the council, 148-149, 181, 185-186, 187 
Service, to church, 5, see also Projects; to day-school, 5, 6; 
to department, 5, 6, 7, 8, 87, 135, 1389, 146, 151, 154, 155, 
157, 167, 174, 189; to entire school, 64-65, 167; to one 
institution, 66; to people, 61, 62, 78, 101, 154, 158, 159; 
see also Projects, friendship 
Sharing, apples, 79; experiences, in worship services, 6, 8, 87, 
90, 200; good times, party for schoolmates, 90, 95, 101; 
interest in Virginia with Juniors, 147; posters, 61, 62; 
programs: Christmas, 51, 66, Easter, 167, Thanksgiving, 
45; song, 60; stories, 191, 200 
Situations and remarks met, 7, 11-12, 17, 40, 42, 43, 49, 51, 
53, 60, 62, 63, 83, 85-86, 94, 95, 100, 101, 109; at play, 
11-12; by following up, 51, 60, 95, 100, 101; by future 
programs, 40, 49, 53, 63, 83, 85-86, 94, 95; by reference 
to Christian flag, 48; by reference to Jesus the Teacher, 
11, 17, 48, 79, 85-86, 99, 102; with a laugh, 95; with a 
song, 7, 109; with cookies, 40; with force, 85-86; with 
nonchalance, 40 
Song, magic writing of, 30, 35; original, 16, 17, 20, 22, 23, 29, 
32, 35, 36, 45, 63, 146, 175, 187, 204; used to avert a 
quarrel, 109 
Songs: 
“All Things Bright and Beautiful,” referred to, 98, 189 
‘‘America,’’ referred to, 114 
“Autumn Day,” referred to, 7, 8, 32 
“‘Away in a Manger,” referred to, 60 
“Blessed are the pure in heart,” 104 
“Children Who Walk in Jesus’ Way,’’ 202, referred to, 204 
“Children’s Thanksgiving Hymn,”’ referred to, 44, 45 
“Father in Heaven,’ 32 
“Wather, we thank thee,”’ referred to, 7, 8 
“Wor, lo, the Winter is Past,’’ referred to, 146, 174 
“Freely ye received, freely give,’’ 8, 47, 62 
“Gentle Child of Nazareth,’ 118, referred to, 110, 113, 
114, 125, 143, 185, 189, 190, 204 
“God is Love,” referred to, 165, 174 
“‘God’s Children Live in Many Lands,” referred to, 113, 1438, 
146, 181, 189 
‘“‘He Cares for Me,’’ referred to, 189 
‘“Hearken, Ye Children,” referred to, 51 
“Holy, Holy, Holy,” referred to, 45 
“Holy Night,’ referred to, 49, 59, 62, 65 
“T Cannot Do Great Things,” referred to, 174, 181 
“J Think When I Read that Sweet Story,” referred to 
4, 7,19, 167, 189 
“Jesus, Friend of Little Children,’”’ referred to, 19, 25 
“Lord, Who Lovest Little Children,” 102, 110, 112, referred 
to, 113, 125, 174 
‘My God, I Thank Thee,” referred to, 125 
“Noel,’’ referred to, 59, 65 
“CO Come, All Ye Faithful,” referred to, 65 
“O Little Town of Bethlehem,” referred to, 48, 49, 50, 5f, 
62, 64, 109 
“Offering Hymn,”’’ 24, referred to, 32 


208 


“Praise Him, Praise Him,” referred to, 167, 189 
“Sabbath Morning Bells,” referred to, 185 
“Sing, Ye Happy Children,” referred to, 189 
“Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,’’ 87-88, referred to, 98, 
1025110 TIS S114 IS 126 iot bpp d trae rok 
185, 190, 204 ; 
“The Alder by the River,’’ referred to, 146, 189 
“The Children’s Service,’ referred to, 181 
“The Church,” referred to, 152, 185 
“The Golden Rule,” 32, referred to, 60, 70, 99 
“This is God’s House,”’ 118, referred to, 1, 7, 8, 24, 99, 183, 
185, 204 
“We Give Thee but Thine Own,” referred to, 189 
“We Plough the Fields and Scatter,”’ referred to, 37, 45 
“We Thank Thee, oh, Our Father,”’ 1, referred to, 5, 6, 8 
“What Can I Give Him,” referred to, 62 
“When We Were Little Children,’’ 22, referred to, 36 
“While Shepherds Watched,” referred to, 59, 62, 65 
Spatter-work, 57-58, 61, 139 
Stewart, Mary, Tell Mea Hero Story, 40 
Stocking, Jay T., The Golden Goblet, 43 
Stocking dolls and eats, 139 
Stories, Bible: 
‘‘A Man Who Wanted to See Jesus’’ (Zacchzeus), 186-138 
“Abraham and Lot,” referred to, 19, 147 
‘Daniel in the Lions’ Den,”’ referred to, 19 
“David and Goliath,”’ referred to, 19 
“David Saving His Sheep,”’ referred to, 19 
“David Sparing Saul,” referred to, 19, 34, 146 
“How Jesus Used His Secret Power,’’ 120-122 
‘How the Disciples Learned to be Great,’’ 81-83, retold, 87 
“‘Jacob’s Night under the Stars,”’ referred to, 19 
Jesus and the Pharisees, referred to, 17, incorporated in 
“The Story of George Kling,’’ 25-29 
“Jesus at a Party,’’ 98-99 
“Jesus in His Father’s House,” 
110, 135 
“‘Peter and John and a Lame Man,” 182-183 
“‘Peter’s Lie,”’ 174-175 
Stories of Jesus, referred to, 157, 167-168 
“‘The Easter Story,’’ 165-167 
“The First Four Pupils in Jesus’ School,’ 
“The Good Samaritan,” referred to, 19 
“‘The Good Shepherd,” referred to, 19 
“The Healing of Bartimzeus,”’ referred to, 143 
“The Last Supper,”’ referred to, 42 
“The Man at the Pool,’’ 193-194 
“The Secret Power of Jesus,’’ 118-120 
“The Story of Jesus’ Last Days on Earth,’’ 155-156 
“The Ten Lepers,”’ referred to, 43 
“The Triumphal Entry,” referred to, 155 
“The Widow’s Mite,’”’ incorporated in “‘George Kling’s 
Gift,’’ 177-179, referred to, 184 
“When Jesus was Angry,’’ 151-152 
Happy Valley: 
“Freely Ye Received, Freely Give,’’ 46-48, referred to, 189 
“From the Wise Man’s Pack: The Happiest Kingdom,”’ 
129-131, referred to, 185 
“George Kling’s Gift,’’ 177-179, referred to, 184 
“Happy Valley’s New Year,’ 74-76 
‘‘How Schools Came to Happy Valley,’’ 8-10 
“How the New Year Law Worked,’’ 107-109 
“In Happy Valley,’’ 2-4 
“Mrs. Fairchild’s Christmas Present,’”’ 54-57, referred to, 
67, 68 
“Story from the Wise Man’s Pack,” a missionary story, 
referred to, 123 
“The Boy Who Learned Most,”’ 195-198, referred to, 202 
“The Discovery of Happy Valley,’’ incorporating section 
of Psalm Ninety-five, 37-39, referred to, 40, 45 
“The Spirit of St. Nicholas, 69-72 
“The Stocking Doll,”’ 139-142 
“The Story of George Kling,’”’ 25-29 
“The Three Bags of Gold,’’ 68-69 
“The Wise Man’s Pack,’’ Washington praying, 115-116 


104-106, referred to, 


32-34 


INDEX 


Miscellaneous: 

““A Lesson in Faith,’’ 160-161 

“‘A Spartan Legend: The City Wall,” 135-136 

Birthday story, 4 

“Goldenrod and Aster,” referred to, 6, 7, 8 

“Half-Finished Land,’’ 187-188, referred to, 187, 189, 192 

“How the Artist Forgot Four Colors,” referred to, 132, 143 

“T Love You, Mother,” referred to, 62, 78 

“In the Path of the Tornado,” 171-173 

Incident of child who scowled, 91 

“Much and More,”’ referred to, 43, 44 

“One of the Crowd,” referred to, 40, 89 

“Reading and Writing and Getting Ready,” referred to, 19 

“The Boy Who Discovered Spring,”’ referred to, 146, 158 

“The Caterpillar’s Journey,’’ 161-162 

“The Children’s Playground,’’ 103-104 

“The Fairy Godmother’s Gifts,’”’ 12-16, retold, 35 

“The Garden of Joseph of Arimathea,’’ referred to, 167 

“The Gold Bugs,” referred to, 11 

“The Golden Touch,”’ referred to, 148 

“The Great Walled Country,” referred to, 51 

“The Greatest Animal,” 87 

“The Jack-o’Lantern,”’ referred to, 148 

“The Jar of Rosemary,” referred to, 60, 61 

“The King’s Thanksgiving,” referred to, 43 

“The Little Girl Who Played all the Time,’’ 169-170 

“The Magic Christmas Tree,” referred to, 62 

“The Magic Mask,’’ 92-93 

“The Monk’s Bible,’’ 110-112, referred to, 113, retold, 131 - 

“The Party,’’ 96-97, referred to, 90, 95 

“The Quails,’’ 96, referred to, 90, 95, 101 

“The Twelve Treasure-Boxes,’’ 79-81 

Washington praying, in ‘“The Wise Man’s Pack,’’ 115-116 

“What the Grub Found Out,’ 162-164 

“Why the Chimes Rang,”’ referred to, 62 

Story-Telling, children’s responses, 2, 3, 54, 70, 72, 73,.76, 80, 
82, 92, 93, 110, 112, 122, 129,130, 135, 138, 165, 166, 179, 
182, 194, see also Retelling stories; cooperation in, 26, 
7,28; 47,56; 70, 71, 72.°106-31290) 130014 tatoo Looe 
171, 182;0n demand: ‘‘David Sparing Saul,” 19, 146, 
“The Monk’s Bible,’ 113, 131; preparation for party: 
“Jesus at a Party,’ 98-99, ‘‘The Party,’’ 96-97, “The 
Quails,’’ 96; to meet a situation: killing animals for fun, 
40, physical courage, ‘‘ One of the Crowd,”’ 40, 89, reviling 
others, ‘‘The Ten Lepers,”’ 43, taking turns or quarreling, 
“The Gold Bugs,”’ 11, tattling, Jesus and the Pharisees,17 
Stowell, J.S., Story Worship Programs for the Church School, 45 


Taking the Blame, 36, 42, 49, 64, 66, 73, 84, 95 

Tattling, 17, 28, 34, 142 

Temper, exhibitions of, 66-67, 85-86, 88-89, 134, 142, 143 

Thanksgiving, stories: ‘‘Much and More,”’ referred to, 43, 44, 
“The Discovery of Happy Valley,’”’ 37-39, referred to, 
40, 45, ‘‘The King’s Thanksgiving,’ referred to, 43, 
“The Ten Lepers,’’ referred to, 43; see also Place cards, 
Worship services planned by children 

Time division, different arrangements, XII, hour’s session 
outlined according to Plan I, 1-5; same material arranged 
according to Plan IT, 5 

Toy making, 124, 131, 145, 184, 191, 200 


Valentines, 96, 109 


Wands, 21, 30, 31, 35 

Weather map, 126-127 

Wiggin and Smith, The Story Hour, 65 

Wilde’s Bible Pictures, 110, 120, 165 

Winchester and Conant, Worship and Song, 50, 51, 64, 87 

Worship services planned by children, 6; after hike, 7, 8, 12; 
Children’s Day, 184, 185, 187, 189, 190, 192, 193, 194, 
201, 203, 204; Christmas, 48, 49, 50, 51, 53, 59, 60, 61, 
62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 73; Easter, 153, 157, 158, 159, 167, 
168; spring, 139, 144, 146, 169, 174, 184, 189; Thanks- 
giving, 12, 36, 38-39, 40, 41-42, 43, 45, 48 


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